■^■P** 



l&*> 



■ 



i v;- ■■■■ :;l!ii 



(///// 



. \ 


: 




II ESt 








'L 






J 


«Um»I 


in*** I 




PTFU 





rr* 



I 




r 



V 




c-. 






^ 



^VPf 



M 



vii^? 



-, a** 



■ 



WBHBKm 




C* K \i< * 4 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, 
Shelf_j?„4 



IMTED STATES OF AMERICA. 



£^31«^ 



:?,£% 



M. >T ""» c 



&2 



S jw\3 



^SS^fe: 



r A*,\^- 



m : 








GRANDPA'S STORIES FROM THE WONDERFUL BOOK. 



Delightful Stories 

OR 

HOME TALKS -^WONDERFUL BOOK 



A SERIES OF ONE HUNDRED DELIGHTFUL FIRESIDE STORIES, IN THE CHATTY, CONVER- 
SATIONAL STYLE, IN WHICH GRANDPA GOODWIN NARRATES THE MOST WON- 
DERFUL OCCURRENCES RECORDED IN THE SACRED VOLUME IN A 
MANNER TO CHARM THE YOUNG FOLKS BY THE REAL 
ROMANCE THEY CONTAIN, AND AT THE SAME 
TIME SOW THE GOOD WHEAT OF DIVINE 
TRUTH IN FERTILE SOIL. 





REV. GEORGE A. PELTZ, D. D. 



FORMERLY ASSOCIATE EDITOR SUNDAY SCHOOL TIMES, ETC., ETC. 



RICHLY ILLUSTRATED 



HUBBARD BROTHERS, Publishers, 

PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



— 






Copyright, 1888, by Hubbard Brothers. 



PREFACE. 



This book is unique in some important respects. Bible stories 
have been told in the words of the Bible and in the sermonizing or 
didactic style, but seldom have they appeared in the real language 
of the household and in the sprightly, conversational manner of an 
intelligent family group about the home fireside. 

This home style is that which childhood craves, which childhood 
understands. Not to be read to nor preached at is childhood's de- 
light ; but to be talked with, to have questions answered and expla- 
nations given, to give and take in the bright word battles of the 
home circle. For the lack of this attractive, nineteenth-century style, 
books of Bible stories and the Bible itself lie neglected and unread 
bv numbers of well-meaning people. To popularize the rich treas- 
ures of the Book of Books is the aim of Grandpa Goodwin's 
Stories. 

In developing the fireside conversations of the book representative 
characters have been chosen. Grandpa himself, Mrs. Reed, Mary, 
Carrie, and Charley are just such people as live everywhere. There 
is not an unreal character in the entire group, and the stories are 
looked at through the eyes of childhood. They are clothed in the 
language of home ; they are brightened with the queries and com- 
1 v 



v i PREFACE. 



ments of a company of wide-awake juveniles ; and yet, in them all 
there is a scrupulous regard for truth and a constant pursuit of the 
profitable. To children these stories will prove a genuine delight ; 
to parents or teachers a valuable help. 

The source whence these stories are drawn is at once the most 
ancient, the most varied, and the most authentic in the world. It 
commands a wider and more profound reverence than any other 
volume extant. Its narratives diverge widely from the beaten paths 
of nineteenth-century life, but they invariably lead to the higher 
grounds of a nobler and happier career. To effectively present 
these romances of sacred writ in the most attractive form, the reader 
is introduced into Grandpa Goodwin's home. Sitting there and 
chatting with him and his dear ones, many a happy hour will be 
passed and many a precious lesson will be learned. 

The power of illustration has also been brought to bear in this 
volume. It is adorned with nearly two hundred elegant engravings, 
about half of which are full-page size. The value of such a pictorial 
presentation of truth will be incalculable to the children and their 
maturer friends. Every one of these illustrations throws light upon 
the text with which it is used, and the one result of the volume 
must be entertainment and proht. 



CONTENTS. 



I. 

Page 

THE WEEK OF WONDERS; or, Making Great Things out of Nothing, 27 

Genesis i, I — 31 ; Hebrews xi, 3. 



II. 

A PEEP INTO PARADISE ; or, Happy People in a Happy Home, 36 

Genesis ii, 1 — 25 ; Revelation ii, 7 ; xxii, I — 5- 



III. 

FEASTING ON FORBIDDEN FRUIT; or, Trifling with a Serpent 40 

Genesis iii, I — 21. 



IV. 

LEAVING A HAPPY HOME; or, From Peace and Plenty to Toil and Tears, ... 46 

Genesis iii, 22 — 24. 



V. 

BURNING THE FIRST FRUITS; or, A Wicked Brother's Brutal Deed, 51 

Genesis iv, 1 — 8 ; Hebrews xi, 4. 



VI. 

THE VOICE OF tfiOOD; or, A Strange Cry from the Ground 56 

Genesis iv, 9 — 16; Matthew xxiii, 35 ; Hebrews xii, 24. 

vii 



viii CONTENTS. 

vn - 

Pag» 
GREATER AND RICHER; or, From Farm Life to City Splendor, 60 

Genesis iv, 16 — 24. 



VIII. 
ALONE, YET NOT ALONE; or, The Unseen Companion of a Singular Man, .... 64 

Genesis v, 21—24; Hebrews xi, 5, \ 



IX. 

A HUNDRED YEARS* JOB; or, A Marvelous Piece of Joiner Work, 69 

Genesis vi, 1—22; Hebrews xi, 7 ; I Peter iii, 20; II Peter ii, 5. 



X. 

TOO WICKED TO LIVE; or, The Greatest Storm on Record, 74 

Genesis vii, 1— 24; Matthew xxiv, 37— 39. 



XI. 

THE BOW OF BEAUTY; or, A Token of Good Things to Come 7& 

Genesis viii, I — 22; ix, I — 17. 



XII. 

MAKING FUN OF HIS FATHER; or, When Wine is in Wit is Out, 83 

Genesis ix, 18 — 29. 



XIII. 

TOO BIG A JOB ; or, A Sudden Change of Plan, 87 

Genesis xi, 1 — 9. 



XIV. 

SURPRISED AND DELIGHTED; or, The First Sight of a Splendid Inheritance, . 91 

Genesis xi, 26 — 32; xii, I — 20. 



XV. 

TRUE NOBILITY; or, Stooping to Conquer 95 

Genesis xiii, I — 18. 



CONTENTS. ix 

XVI. ' 

Page 

HOME FROM THE FIGHT; or, Royal Honors for Victors, 101 

Genesis xiv, I — 24. 



XVII. 

LESSONS FROM THE STARS ; or, A Grand Future Foretold, 104 

Genesis xv, 1 — 6; Hebrews xi, 11, 12. 



XVIII. 

FAMILY TROUBLES; or, The Serpent in the Home, TT" 107 

Genesis xvi, I — 16; xxi, I — 21; xxv, 9 — 18. 



XIX. 

THREE WONDERFUL GUESTS; or, Entertaining Angels Unawares, 112 

Genesis xviii, I — 33. 



XX. 

EVERYTHING DESTROYED; or, Fleeing from the Burning City, 116 

Genesis xix, 1 — $& ; Deuteronomy xxix, 23. 



XXI. 

A TIMELY RESCUE; or, The Child of Promise Saved, 120 

Genesis xxii, 1 — 19; Hebrews xi, 17 — 19. 



XXII. 

A QUEER COURTSHIP; or, Why Supper was Delayed, 124 

Genesis xxiv, I — 67. 



XXIII. 

SHARP PRACTICE; or, Diamond Cut Diamond, 130 

Genesis xxvii, I — 45 ; Hebrews xi, 20. 



XXIV. 

THE WONDERFUL LADDER ; or, A Stairway to the Skies, 135 

Genesis xxviii, 1 — 22; John i, 51. 



x CONTENTS. 



XXV. 

Pagr 



WHICH HE LOVED BEST; or, Seeking One and Getting Two, Ho 

Genesis xxix, I— 30; xxx, 25—43; xxxi, I — 5S- 



XXVI. 

A FAMOUS WRESTLING MATCH; or, The Victorious Cripple, 144 

Genesis, chapters xxxii — xxxiii. 

XXVII. 

THE FRUITS OF ENVY; or, Bartering Away a Brother, 148 

Genesis xxxvii, 1 — 36. 



XXVIII. 

FROM PRISON TO POWER; or, Good Brought Out of Evil, 15 3 

Genesis, chapters xxxix, xl, xli. 



XXIX. 

HUNGRY AND HELPLESS; or, Boyhood's Dreams Fulfilled, IS 6 

Genesis, chapters xlii — lxvii. 



XXX. 

HARD TIMES; or, Much Work and Little Pay, . . . l62 

Genesis, chapters xlviii — 1; Exodus i, 1 — 16. 



XXXI. 

A WAIF ON THE WATER; or, Floating Into Fortune, 165 

Exodus, chapters ii, iii. 



XXXII. 

A STRANGE SNAKE STORY; or, One Swallowing A Multitude, 17° 

Exodus iv, 1 — 23; vii, I — 12. 



XXXIII. 

FLYING FOR FREEDOM ; or, A Marvelous Deliverance *73 

Exodus vii, 12 — 25; chapters viii — xv. 



CONTENTS. xi 

XXXIV. 

Page 

HANDS UP; or, How They Won the Battle, . . 180 

Exodus xvii, 8 — 1 6. 



XXXV. 

A POOR EXCUSE; or, What Came Out of the Fire, 183 

Exodus, chapters xix, xxxii. 



XXXVI. 

THE GORGEOUS TENT; or, Worship in the Wilderness, ii 

Exodus, chapters xxv — xxxi, xxxv — xl ; Numbers xvii. 



XXXVII. 

LIFE FOR A LOOK; or, Thousands Cured Though Fatally Bitten, 193 

Numbers xxi, 4 — 9; II Kings xviii, 4; John iii, 14, 15. 



XXXVIII. 

FORTY YEARS A GENERAL; or, Surrendering a Great Commission, 197 

Numbers xx vii, 15—23; Deuteronomy xxxiv; Joshua i, I — 18; v, 13 — 15. 



XXXIX. 

WATER HEAPED UP; or, The Wonderful Crossing, 202 

Joshua, chapters iii, iv. 



XL. 

VICTORY AND DEFEAT; or, Why They Conquered and How They Fled, . : . . . 206 

Joshua, chapters vi — viii. 



XLI. 

DIVIDING THE INHERITANCE; or, Realizing a Great Possession, . . 210 

Joshua, chapters x — xix. 



XLII. 

STRENGTH TURNED TO WEAKNESS; or, How the Mighty Fell, 214 

Judges, chapters xiii — xvi. 



xii CONTENTS. 

XLIII. 

Page 

I NDVING DEVOTION; or, Two Loving Hk arts 219 

Ruth, chapters i — iv. 



XLIV. 

BRAVE DEEDS OF A SHEPHERD BOY; or, Fit to Become a King 224 

I Samuel xvii. 



XLV. 

A RUGGED WAY TO THE THRONE; or, Patience and Forbearance Rewarded, . . 230 
I Samuel, chapters xvi — xxxi; II Samuel i. 



XLVI. 

THE WAYWARD SON; or, Troubles and Trials About the Throne, 236 

II Samuel, chapters xiv — xviii. 



XLVII. 

GREATEST AMONG KINGS ; or, Splendor Dazzling a Queen 240 

I Kings i, 5 — 53 ; chapters ii — x ; Matthew vi, 28 — 30. 



XLVIII. 

THE RIVAL KINGS ; or, Rough Roads for Royal Feet, 245 

I Kings xi, 26 — 43 ; chapters xii — xiv. 



XLIX. 

MIRACULOUS FEEDING; or, Strange Supplies in Dire Distress, 249 

I Kings xvii, I — 24; Luke iv, 25, 26. 



L. 

THE PLOWMAN'S APPOINTMENT; or, Called to a Great Office, 254 

I Kings xix, 15 — 21 ; II Kings, chapters ii — iv. 



LI. 

THE LITTLE CAPTIVE ; or, What a Serving Maid May Do, 259 

II Kings v, 1 — 27. 



CONTE.\'IS. xni 

LII. 

Page 

THE MYSTERIOUS PANIC; or, Abundance for Starvation, 263 

II Kings vi, 24—33; vii, 1—20. 

LIU. 

THROWN FROM THE WINDOW; or, A Wicked Queen's Fearful End 267 

II Kings ix, 30—37. 



LIV. 

GOOD AND BEAUTIFUL; or, A Godly Queen's Noble Act, 270 

Esther, chapters i — x. 



LV. 

SATAN LET LOOSE; or, Suffering Without Sinning, .275 

Job, chapters i, ii, xlii. 



LVI. 

UNCOMFORTABLE QUARTERS; or, The Runaway Brought Back, 280 

Jonah, chapters i, ii; Matthew xii, 40. 



LVII. 

THE DISAPPOINTED PREACHER; or, Prophecy not Fulfilled 284 

Jonah iii, iv; Matthew xii, 41. 



LVIII 

FOUR NOBLE BOYS; or, Right Better than Royalty, 288 

Daniel i, I — 21. 



LIX. 

FAITHFUL AND FEARLESS; or, Braving Death for Duty's Sake, 293- 

Daniel, chapters ii, iii, vi % 



LX, 

THE MYSTERIOUS MESSAGE; or, Panic at the Feast, 298 

Daniel v, I — 31. 



x iv CONTENTS. 

LXI. 

Pace 

WONDERFUL BABES; or, The King and his Herald 303 

Luke i, 5— 80; ii, 21—40. 



LXII. 

CHRISTMAS CAROLS; or, Heaven and Earth Rejoicing, 308 

Luke ii, 1 — 20. 



LXIII. 

LED BY A STAR; or, A Long Way to Worship 313 

Matthew ii, I— 23. 



LXIV. 

PUZZLING HIS TEACHERS; or, Youth Wiser than Old Age 317 

Luke ii, 41 — 52. 



LXV. 

A BACKWOODS PREACHER; or, Crying in the Wilderness, 32* 

Matthew iii; Luke iii, 1 — 20; John i, 18 — 37; Matthew xiv, 1 — 12. 



LXVI. 

THE WONDERFUL WATER- JARS; or, Serving His Friends 32? 

John ii, 1 — 11. 



LXVII. 

CHOOSING COMPANIONS; or, How the Lord Got His Helpers, 333 

Matthew x; John iii, I — 21. 



LXVI II. 

A DEN OF THIEVES ; or, Turning the Rascals Out, ... 33S 

John ii, 13 — 17; Matthew xxi, 10 — 13. 



LXIX. 

WALKING ON THE WAVES; or, Lord of the Seas 342 

Matthew viii, 23 — 26; xiv, 22 — 33; Mark vi, 45 — 51. 



CONTENTS. xv 

LXX. 

Page 

THE GREAT OCULIST; or, Sight for the Bund, 347 

Matthew ix, 27 — 31 ; xi, 4, 5; Mark viii, 22 — 25; x, 46 — 52; John ix, I — 41. 



LXXI. 

GETTING AT THE DOCTOR ; or, Odd Ways of Gaining a Cure, 352 

Mark v, 24 — 34; Luke v, 18—26. 



LXXII. 
THE CHILDREN'S FRIEND ; or, Jesus Among the Little Ones, . 357 

Mark v, 21 — 43; ix, 17 — 29. 



LXXIII. 

CALLED BACK FROM THE GRAVE; or, Victories over Death, 363 

Luke vii, II — 15; John xi, 1 — 54. 



LXXIV. 

THE ROYAL SHEPHERD; or, Love for the Lowly, 369 

John x, I — 18; Luke xv, I — 7. 



LXXV. 

SCATTERING SEED ; or, Evil Among the Good, 374 

Matthew xiii, I — 30, 36 — 43. 



LXXVI. 

WONDERS OF YEAST; or, The Power of Influence, 380 

Matthew xiii, 33. 



LXXVII. 

FINES AND FRUIT TREES; or, Shall we Cut it Down ? 384 

John xv, I — 8; Luke xiii, 6 — 9. 



LXXVIII. 

SEEKING IN EARNEST; or, Bound to Win 389 

Matthew xiii, 44 — 46 ; Luke xv, 8, 9. 



xvi CONTENTS. 

LXXIX. 

¥>■■- 

A ROYAL WELCOME; or, The Wanderer Home Again, 396 

Luke xv, 11 — 24. 



LXXX. 

TOO LATE ; or, Rejected at the Door 40r 

Matthew xxv, 1 — 13. 



LXXXI. 

GENEROSITY ABUSED ; or, Forgiveness for the Forgiving, 405 

Matthew xviii, 23 — 35. 



LXXXII. 

WORK AND WAGES; or, Settling with the Servants, 409 

Matthew xx, 1 — 16. 



LXXXIII. 

ANOINTING JESUS; or, The Good Work of Two Women, 414 

Luke vii, 36 — 50; John xii, 1 — 7. 



LXXXIV. 

THE TRIUMPHAL MARCH ; or, A Worthy Welcome to the King, . 419 

John xii, 12 — 16. 



LXXXV. 

GATHERING DARKNESS; or, Love and Sorrow Strangely Blended 424 

John, chapters xiii — xviii; Mark xiv, 26 — 52. 



LXXXVI. 

BETRAYED AND BOUND; or, Still Deeper Darkness, 430 

Luke xxii, 39 — 54; Matthew xxvi, 30 — 56. 



LXXXVII. 

MIDNIGHT ADVENTURES; or, Deserted and Denied, 435 

Mark xiv, 53 — 72; Luke xxii, 21 — 34, 54 — 62. 



CONTENTS. xvii 

LXXXVIII. 

Page 

A MOCKERY OF JUSTICE; or, Overawed by a Mob, 440 

Matthew xxvii, I — 32; Mark xv, I — 21; Luke xxiii, 1 — 32; John xviii, xix, 1 — 16. 

LXXXIX. 

IT IS FINISHED; or, The Tragedy Completed, 447 

Matthew xxvii, 34 — 66; Mark xv, 22—47; Luke xxiii, 33 — 56; John xix, 17 — 42. 



XC. 

THE OPENED TOMB; or, From Death to Life Again, 454 

Matthew xxviii; Mark xvi; Luke xxiv, I — 49; John xx, xxi. 



XCI. 

THE CONQUEROR'S RETURN; or, A Marvelous Ascension, 461 

Luke xxiv, 50 — 53; Acts i, 1 — n. 



XCII. 

TALKING IN STRANGE TONGUES; or, Power from on High 466 

Acts i, 12 — 26; ii; iv. 32 — 37; v. I — 11. 



XPTIT. 

POWER IN A NAME; or, A Lame Man Caused to Leap, 473 

Acts iii, 1 — 26. 



XCIV. 

FREED FROM PRISON; or, Doors Opened without Hands, 478 

Acts xii, 1 — 23. 



XCV. 

PICKING UP A PASSENGER; or, The Right Man in the Right Place 483 

Acts viii, 26 — 40. 



XCVI. 

A BONFIRE OF BOOKS; or, Strange Honors for True Men, 489 

Acts xiv, 8 — 18; xix, I — 20. 



xviii CONTENTS. 

XCVII. 

Pacb 

IN THE PATH OF DUTY; or, Tears and Terrors Powerless, 495 

Acts, chapters xx — xxvi. 



XCVIII. 

THE IMPERIAL CITY; or, The End at Hand 500 

Acts, chapters xxvii, xxviii. 



XCIX. 

LESSONS FROM NATURE; or, New Views of Old Subjects 506 

Isaiah xxxii, 2; Song of Solomon ii, I ; Luke xii, 4. 



C. 

THE VENERABLE PRISONER; or, Broad Views from a Narrow Island, 51* 

Revelation, chapters i — xxii. 



List of Illustrations. 



Grandpa's Stories from the Wonderful Book, Frontispiece. 

Pagh 

Philip Doddridge Taught by Pictures (full page), 26 

Emerging from Chaos, 31 

Dominion Over Created Things, , 39 

Hiding from the Lord, 43 

Expelled from Paradise, 47 

Toiling for Daily Bread, 49 

Burning the First Fruits, 52 

Slaying His Brother, 53 

Fleeing from the Dead (full page), 57 

Building a City 62 

Walking Heavenward (full page), 65 

The Boatbuilder Taught, 7 1 

The Dove Sent Forth (full page), 77 

Coming Ashore 79 

The Bow of Beauty, 81 

Cursed be Canaan, 85 

Scattering of the Nations 89 

A Splendid Outlook, 9 2 

Abram's Magnanimous Offer (full page), 97 

Blessing the Victors, 102 

Seeing Stars, 105 

Banished from Home, 109 

Entertaining Angels, 1*5 

A City on Fire _, "7 

xix 



x x L IS T OF ILL US TRA TIONS. 

Pacb 

A Narrow Escape, 122 

Seeking a Bride, 125 

Meeting a Husband, 127 

An Oriental Well-scene (full page), 129 

The Wrong Man Blessed 133 

The Wonderful Ladder, 137 

Fixing His Wages, 141 

Off for Home, . . • 143 

A Strange Wrestling Match, 146 

Reconciliation, 147 

A Wicked Sale, . 150 

Before the King 154 

In the Place of Honor • 157 

The Unknown Brother (full page) 159 

A Glad Meeting, 161 

Hard Times 163 

Rescuing a Waif, 166 

Slaying the Tyrant, 167 

Burning, yet not Consumed (full page), 169 

Sticks Turned to Snakes, 171 

Death in every House, 174 

Buried in the Sea (full page), 177 

Celebrating Victory (full page), 179 

Winning the Battle (full page) 181 

Worshiping a Calf, 185 

Mount Sinai (full page), 187 

The Tent of Worship 189 

Carrie's Plan of the Tabernacle 130 

Blossoms on a Rod, 191 

The Healing Serpent (full page), 195 

The New Commander, . . 198 

The Commander-in-Chief, . . • 201 

Waters Heaped Up (full page) -203 



LIST OF ILL USTRA TIONS. xxi 

Pag* 
Carry Out the Memorials (full page), 205 

The Falling Walls of Jericho, 207 

Recovering the Stolen Treasures (full page), 209 

Five Kings in a Cave, 211 

Dividing the Land by Lot, • 213 

Samson Slaying his Foes, 215 

Fall of Dagon's Temple, 218 

Ruth and Naomi, 221 

Ancient Israelites at their Meal (full page), 223 

Bearding the Lion in his Den (full page), 225 

Gathering Ammunition from the Brook (full page), 227 

The Giant Beheaded (full page), . 229 

God's Chosen King Anointed, 231 

Sparing a Sleeping Foe, 233 

Death of Israel's first King (full page), 235 

Curses on a King, 237 

David's Charge to his Son (full page), ' 241 

Royal Courtesies Interchanged (full page), . » 243 

Dividing the Kingdom, 246 

Death of the Young Prince (full page), . . . . • 248 

Supplied in the Wilderness (full page), 250 

Supplied in the City (full page), 251 

Life for the Dead Boy, , 253 

The Mocking Children (full page), 255 

A Marvelous Jar of Oil (full page), 257 

View of the Jordan, .• 260 

Gehazi's Terrible Penalty (full page), 261 

Lepers Viewing the Deserted Camp (full page), 265 

Thrown from a Window, , 268 

Scribes at their Work (full page), 271 

Mordecai in Honor (full page), 273 

Job in Sorrow (full page), 276 

Job in Prosperity, 279 

2 



xxii LIST OF ILL USIRA TIONS. 

Pag/ 

Tossed into the Sea 281 

Preaching in Nineveh, 285 

Nineveh's Great Palace , 287 

The Young Teetotalers (full page), 289 

The Youthful Counsellor (full page), 291 

In the Den of Lions, 296 

The Proud King's Outlook (full page), 297 

The Mysterious Handwriting (full page), 299 

Destruction of Babylon (full page), 301 

John's Birth Foretold 304 

Mary and Elizabeth Rejoicing, 305 

The Babe in the Temple, 307 

The First Christmas Carol 309 

Chapel of the Nativity (full page), • 310 

Telling the Good News, 311 

Led by a Star (full page), 315 

The Boy in the Temple, 319 

The Backwoods Preacher, 323 

Reproving the Soldiers, 324 

"Behold the Lamb of God!" 325 

A Joyous Feast (full page), 329 

View of Cana (full page) 331 

The Night Interview, 334 

" Go ye and Preach," 335 

Driving Out the Peddlers, 339 

View of the Sea of Galilee (full page), 343 

Walking on the Sea (full page), 345 

Two Persistent Blind Men " 349 

The Oculist at His Work (full page), 351 

A Successful Seeker (full page), 353 

Lowered through the Roof (full page), 355 

A. Helping Hand for a Boy (full page), 358 

A Helping Hand for a Girl (full page) 361 



LIST OF ILL USTRA TIONS. xxiii 

Page 

Life for a Dead Young Man, 364 

View of Bethany (full page), 365 

Life for One Dead Four Days 367 

The Fond Sheep-owner (full page), 371 

Bringing Back the Lost One (full page), 373 

Scattering Good Seed (full page), 375 

Doing Mischief (full page), 379 

Wonders of Yeast (full page), 383 

Lessons from the Vine (full page), 385 

Shall We Cut it Down ? (full page), 387 

Seeking Hidden Treasures (full page), 390 

Buying the Splendid Pearl (full page), 391 

Search for the Coin (full page), 395 

Home Again (full page), 398 

Too Late; or, The Foolish Virgins (full page), 403 

The Forgiving King (full page), 4°7 

Dissatisfied with their Wages (full page), • 413 

Jesus Anointed by Mary Magdalene, 4*5 

Anointed by the Sister of Lazarus, 4*7 

The Triumphal March, • 4 21 

View of Jerusalem (full page), 4 2 3 

Garden of Gethsemane (full page), 4 2 *> 

Agony in the Garden (full page), 4 2 9 

Arrested and Bound, 433 

The Fearful Denial (full page), 437 

Pilate's Mockery of Justice, 44 2 

On the Way to Calvary, 444 

The Sorrowful Way (full page), 445 

Church of the Holy Sepulchre (full page), 449 

Laid in the Tomb, 453 

Mary at the Opened Tomb, 45° 

The Joyful Meeting, 457 

The Wayside Talk (full page), 459 



xxiv LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Pagb 

The Meeting by the Sea 463 

Return to the Father, 465 

Descent of the Comforter, 468 

Bringing in the Money (full page), 47 1 

The Discarded Crutches (full page) 475 

An Unexpected Liberation (full page), 481 

A Helpful Companion, 4^5 

Philip's Fountain 4-87 

Mistaken for Gods, 49° 

A Bonfire of Books (full page), 493 

A Tearful Parting 49^ 

Pursued by a Mob (full page), 499 

Ancient Style of Ships 5°' 

The Appian Way (full page), 5°3 

Paul and his Son in the Gospel (full page), S°S 

Shadow of a Great Rock, 5°7 

Lily of the Valley, 5°8 

Caring for the Birds (full page), 5" 

The Outlook from Patmos (full page), 5*3 



Grandpa Goodwins Stories 



from 



The Wonderful Book. 




PHILIP DODDRIDGE TAUGHT EY PICTURES. 



THE WEEK OF WONDERS. 27 

THE WEEK OF WONDERS ■ 

Or, MAKING GREAT THINGS OUT OF NOTHING. 



""T "T THEN Grandpa comes I will ask him," said little Charley 
\/\/ Reed to his sister Carrie, who had been telling him how 
* * the world was made. Her teacher had told her that God 
made all things out of nothing. Carrie was but two years older than 
Charley, yet she thought herself quite competent to be his teacher. 
But Charley was full of questions, and it was not many minutes 
before he had completely puzzled Carrie, and it was his unsatisfied 
curiosity about this making of the world that prompted his resolution 
to ask Grandpa about it. 

Carrie and Charley, with their older sister Mary and their mother,, 
lived at Grandpa's house, their father being away from home much of 
the time attending to business. Grandpa, or " Grandpa Goodwin," 
as many persons called him, was Mrs. Reed's father, and he was 
very fond of his "little pets," the grandchildren. But his fondness 
was not of a foolish sort. It did not show itself in candies and cakes 
half so often as in kind and wise words and acts, which made the 
children happier and better. They believed in Grandpa. They were 
sure he knew everything, and that he could do everything that was 
worth doing. Grandpa Goodwin did know a great many things, for 
he had always loved to read good books and to listen to wise men, 
and he had a wonderfully happy knack in telling what he knew. 

Charley waited very impatiently for Grandpa's return. He had 
never seen anything made out of nothing. His top, he argued, 
was made out of wood and iron. His pocket-knife was made 
of iron and steel and bone. His shoes were made of leather. 



2 8 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



and leather was made of skins, and the skins had grown on cows 
So Charley thought over very many things, but they all were made 
out of something. Then he thought how big the world was and how 
many things were made up in it. Where did all the dirt come from, 
and the rocks that make the great mountains ? Then he thought 
about the ocean, which he had seen at Long Branch, and he wondered 
where all the water came from. So his ideas grew bigger and 
bio-orer, and there were so many things he wanted to ask about that 
he wished and waited and looked and longed for the sight of Grandpa 
hurrying home. At last Charley did see him coming, and ran to 
meet him. Hardly waiting for the kiss Grandpa stooped to give him, 
he broke out very eagerly with the question, " Where did God get 
things to make the world of, Grandpa ?" 

Grandpa Goodwin was too wise a man to answer such a big 
question carelessly. He never gave the children a false or evasive 
answer. He used to say, " When a child wants to learn, then is the 
time to teach." So Grandpa did not answer Charley's question, but 
roused his curiosity still further by asking, "How many things did 
God need to make a world ?" 

"Oh! I don't know," said the boy, "but ever so many things, I'm 
sure. There are stones and trees and dirt and water and horses 
an d — oh ! I don't know, Grandpa ; but tell me, where did God get 
them ? Did He make them out of nothing ? Carrie said He did, 
but He didn't, did He ? He couldn't do that, could He, Grandpa ?" 

By this time they were fairly in the house, and Grandpa felt more 
than ever that what he might say should be wisely said, so he told 
Charley that after supper they would sit down for a good talk on 
how God made the world. 

When supper was over the family gathered in the sitting-room 
about the centre-table, on which a bright light burned. Grandpa 
was in his easy-chair, while Charley, restless and eager, was close 
beside him. Carrie looked a little anxious, as though half afraid that 
her well-meant lesson of the afternoon would prove incorrect. Mary 



THE WEEK OF WONDERS. 29 

had brought her Bible, which she opened at the first chapter of 
Genesis, so that she might see what was there said about the 
creation. Mrs. Reed sat in her sewing-chair doing some fancy work, 
and anticipating a pleasant evening. 

"Now, Grandpa," began Charley, "do please tell us how God 
made the world. I am almost crazy to hear all about it." 

"To tell all about it," replied Grandpa, "is more than any man can 
do. We have neither time nor knowledge for so great a task. But 
I can tell you many things about it, and shall do so very willingly. 
To give us a fair start, will Mary please read the first two verses of 
Genesis?" 

Mary had her eye on the place in an instant, and read : " In the 
beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth 
was without form, and void ; and darkness was. upon the face of 
the deep : and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." 

" When was the beginning ?" asked Carrie, who had listened very 
intently to these verses. 

" Nobody knows when it was," said Grandpa. " It was very, very 
long ago when God began His work upon the heavens and the earth." 

"But," interposed Mary, "my Bible says it was four thousand and 
four years before Christ." 

" Your Bible does not say so, Mary. The notes put in its margin 
by the good men who edited it say so ; but this is no part of what 
God said. Those good men wanted to make the Bible plain for its 
readers. They figured out that Adam was created four thousand 
and four years before Christ came, but that time is probably far too 
short. The beginning, however, was long before Adam was 
created." 

" Why," said Carrie, " did not God make all things in six days ?" 

" Yes, Carrie, but not in six short days such as we have. A day may 
be a very long period of time. God's seventh day of rest from crea- 
ting has lasted six thousand years already. If the other days were as 
long, thirty-six thousand years passed between the beginning and 



30 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



the time of Adam's creation. The fact is, that many more years 
passed— how many, nobody knows. But that far-off beginning was 
not God's beginning. He never had a beginning. He is eternal. 
He always did live, and always will live. And in that beginning God 
was able to create the heaven and the earth." 

" What does create mean, Grandpa ?" asked Charley. 

"Mary may read you an answer from the dictionary. That, I 
think, will give the clearest and best explanation." 

" Create," said Mary, who quickly found the word, "means — to 
bring into being ; to form out of nothing ; to cause to exist." 

" Yes," said Grandpa, " and that is exactly what God did. He did 
not take a quantity of material and make it into a sun, a moon, a 
star, or a world, but He brought them into being ; He formed them 
out of nothing; ; He caused them to exist, as the dictionary explains 
« create.' In Hebrews xi, 2, it is said, ' Things which- are seen were 
not made of things which do appear ;' that is, nothing appears any- 
where out of which the things we now see — the heavens and the 
earth — were made." 

" This verse in Hebrews," said Mary, who had turned to the text 
quoted by Grandpa, " also says, ' The worlds were framed by the word 
of God.' What does that mean ?" 

" It means that they were made, not by any work or effort of God, 
but simply by His command. The third verse of Genesis tells us, 
' God said, Let there be light ; and there was light.' In one of the 
Psalms we read, ' He spake, and it was done ; He commanded, and 
it stood fast.' " 

" I told you so, Charley," shouted Carrie, who was delighted to 
find her afternoon's teaching approved by Grandpa. 

"Well," said Charley, "that's a new way to make things. 'He 
spake, and it was done.' I wish I could make things I want so 
easily. I'd speak for a lot of 'em, I know." 

" But what is meant by this," asked Mary, as she again read from 
Genesis — "'The earth was without form and void'?" 



THE WEEK OF WONDERS. 



31 



" Simply that it had none of the regularity and beauty we now see. 
But God was taking care of it. His Spirit was there bringing things 
into proper shape. At first total darkness rested everywhere, but 
God spoke, and light broke in, showing for the first time the difference 
between day and night. Thus much was done in God's first day of 
creatine." 

"His Monday," said Carrie, " for it was His first work-day." 




" And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.'''' — Genesis i, 2. 

" Yes, you may call it so," said Grandpa, " only remember it was 
not a day of twenty-four hours, but — what?" 

" A very long day," they all answered, Mary adding the remark, 
"Thousands of years long." 

"What was God's Tuesday's work?" asked Charley, catching at 
the new way of naming God's days. 



32 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

"When that clay began," resumed Grandpa, "a dense steam or 
mist wrapped the whole world. It was far worse than in our fog- 
giest days. But this steam was cooling, and as steam cools it 
becomes water. This water gathered on the surface of the earth and 
soon began to trickle into the deeper places, where creeks, rivers, 
lakes, and seas began to form. The lighter masses of steam floated 
upward as clouds, leaving the open space, called the firmament, which 
we see between the clouds above and the earth below. This clear- 
ing away of the vapor and forming of water and clouds was God's 
second day's work." 

"God's Tuesday's work, Grandpa," said Charley; "you forget the 
name. But oh ! what a queer-looking world it must have been !" 

"Yes," said Grandpa, "but it soon began to look better, for on the 
third day — Wednesday, I should say — the waters gathered together 
more and more, leaving parts of dry land standingoutas islands and 
continents. Then God spoke again, and plants began to grow. All 
kinds of trees, flowers, and herbs appeared ; but Mary may read 
about this from the story in Genesis." 

In an instant Mary's eye was upon the eleventh verse, and she 
read : " And God said, Let the earth brine forth erass, the herb 
yielding seed, and the fruit-tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose 
seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth 
brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the 
tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind : and God 
saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the 
third day." 

"That was perfectly splendid !" said Carrie, as Mary ended. 

"That's so," said Charley, with real boy emphasis, "and everything 
was bran new, wasn't it ?" 

" Yes, there was not a dead tree, nor a rotten branch, nor a dried 
leaf, nor a withered flower in all the world. All was fresh and beauti- 
ful. It was springtime all over the world, the grandest springtime 
the world ever enjoyed. There were plants growing then which 



THE WEEK OF WONDERS. 33 

were bigger than any we now see. Prints of their trunks, stems, and 
leaves are often found in what are now the solid rocks. Coal is but 
the hardened remains of these plants which then grew so large and in 
such immense quantities. And God made all those plants with their 
own seeds, so that each of them would produce other plants like 
itself. To do this was as if a watchmaker should make a watch, 
which, after running awhile, would open and push out of itself another 
little watch, which would grow, and in its turn would bring forth still 
another little watch, and this another, and so on and on for hundreds 
of years. What would you think of a man who could make such a 
watch ? But God made all the varieties of the vegetable world, and 
every variety, whether great or small, has power to produce other 
plants like itself, and so the earth has been kept green and beautiful 
ever since the Wednesday of God's great creative week." 

"Oh! my," cried Charley, as Grandpa paused in his description; 
" I never thought of that. How splendid the flowers are !" 

" Rather, Charley," said Mary, " how splendid God is who created 
all thes? wonders." 

" Let me repeat for you two verses of an old poem, by N. P. 
Willi's," said Mrs. Reed, who for some time had ceased from her 
work a^d had been an attentive listener : 

" ' The perfect world by Adam trod 
Was the first temple built to God ; 
His fiat laid the corner-stone, 
He spake, and lo ! the work was done. 

" ' He hung its starry roof on high, 
The broad expanse of azure sky; 
He spread its pavement green and bright, 
And curtained it with morning light.' " 

" Beautiful indeed," exclaimed Grandpa, " and true as it is 
beautiful." 

"Thursday's work I don't understand," said Mary, glancing at 
her Bible. " God made light on the first day, but on the fourth day 



34 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

He made the sun, moon, and stars, ' to give light upon the earth,' the 
seventeenth verse says. Why were they needed to give light, when 
light had already been given ? Or, rather, how could there be any 
light at all before they were created." 

"I don't wonder at your questions, Mary," said Grandpa. "Many 
older heads have been puzzled at that point. Light had come to 
the earth, but because of the dense vapors, the sources of light had 
not appeared. We have light on cloudy days, though we do not 
see the sun. But when the mists cleared away, and the open 
firmament appeared, then the sources of light became visible, as if 
at that moment they had been newly made." 

" Oh ! I see," said Mary. " God made them appear on that day." 

" Just so. If a person had been looking on to report what 
occurred, he would have described this day's work just as the Bible 
does. Indeed, when God showed Moses how the world was made, 
so that Moses might write it in the book of Genesis, He probably 
snowed a series of visions, each giving a new view of the progress 
of creation, and each forming a new day in this week of wonders." 

" The Friday of that week was a great day, wasn't it, Grandpa ?" 
said Mary, looking up from her Bible, " for then God made all the 
birds and fishes." 

" Yes," said Grandpa. " Up to this time there was no living 
creature in all the world — no beasts in the forests ; no birds amone 
the trees ; no fish in the waters ; no reptiles in the grass ; no insects 
in the air. But the earth was ready for animals to live upon it, 
and so God spoke again. In an instant flocks of birds rose in the 
air, flitted among the branches, or waded in the streams. And 
fishes at once began to stir the brooks, the rivers, and the seas. 
For the first time, a chorus of praise went up to God from the 
throats of birds. Life abounded everywhere, and every creature 
was full of praise." 

" Oh !" cried Charley, " that was splendid ! Mother took me to see 
ever so many stuffed birds and fishes in the museum, and they were 



THE WEEK OF WONDERS. 35 

so pretty — all colors and shapes and sizes — and God made all of 
them, and lots more, and did it all in one day. That's something 
grand, I declare !" 

" Yes, Charley, and many other kinds of birds and fishes — far 
more than are found in all the museums of the world. The 
splendid colors of humming birds, peacocks, cockatoos, birds of 
Paradise, and innumerable others, were all the work of God in that 
one day " 

" Well, I am sure God loves pretty colors, then," said Carrie, 
" and pretty forms too, for what can be prettier than birds with 
their gay plumage ?" 

"And their sweet voices, too," said Charley, " for what can be 
sweeter than the sinking of birds ?" 

" But we must hasten to the last day," said Grandpa, glancing at 
the clock. " On the sixth day God made all the land animals, birds 
only excepted. Creatures with wings, and those with fins, were 
already living, but now the great beasts of the forest were created. 
Some of them were far larger than any known to us. The cattle, 
too, were created on this day, and all creeping things. Over the 
hills the flocks then scampered for the first time. In the meadows 
the cattle grazed, and beasts of prey ranged through the forests. 
None were old or lame or sick. It was a glorious world, but God 
had one more glory to add. This was the creation of man. He 
was formed to be ruler over all other created things, and to be the 
companion and loving servant of the Creator Himself. But we must 
stop for to-night. To-morrow, if you wish, we will take a peep into 
Paradise, and see man in this happy home." 

The "good nights" were then said, and well pleased with their 
chat on the week of wonders., the little party scattered. 



36 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



A PEEP INTO PARADISE; 

Or, HAPPY PEOPLE IN A HAPPY HOME. 



"1 TERE we are !" shouted Charley; " all ready for our prom- 

I I ised peep into Paradise." 

-*--*- " Glad to see you," answered Grandpa Goodwin, as he 

seated himself in his easy chair. " Let us see what Paradise means." 

" I have it !" exclaimed Mary. " I found it in the dictionary. It 
means (i) The Garden of Eden, in which Adam and Eve were placed; 
(2) A place of bliss — a region of supreme delight ; (3) Heaven." 

"Very good, Mary. The word first meant a beautiful piece of 
country, such as we see in the great parks of our cities. The Bible 
does not give this name to Adam's home, yet it is so appropriate 
that by everybody the Garden of Eden is called Paradise. The ac- 
count given of this garden is very short. We are simply told that 
God planted it eastward in Eden, that it was well watered every- 
where, that ever}'' tree pleasant to the eye and good for food was 
there, that it was, in short, what its Bible name means — a garden of 
Eden — that is, a garden of delight.'" 

"And don't we know anything more of how it looked?" asked 
Carrie, with evident disappointment. 

" We do not know, but we can fairly imagine a great deal of how 
it looked. This is what the great English poet, John Milton, did in 
his wonderful book called Paradise Lost. From the many splendid 
gardens he had seen before he became blind he selected the most 
beautiful things and put them all together in his imaginary garden 
of Eden. Your mother may read us some of Milton's descriptions 
of Adam's happy home in Paradise." 



A PEEP INTO PARADISE. 37 

Mrs. Reed, on Grandpa's suggestion, turned to her well-used copy 
of Milton and read several selections. Among them these : 

"In this pleasant soil 
His far more pleasant garden God ordain'd; 
Out of the fertile ground He caused to grow 
All trees of noblest kind for sight, smell, taste — 
And all amid them stood the tree of life. ' ' 

" Concerning the stream which watered the garden," continued 
Mrs. Reed, " Milton speaks thus: " 

" 'Rolling on orient pearl and sands of gold, 
With mazy error under pendant shades 
Ran Nectar, visiting each plant, and fed 
Flow'ers worthy of Paradise, which not nice art 
In beds and curious knots, but nature boon 
Pour'd forth profuse on hill and dale and plain.' 

" Again, in describing the splendid groves of Paradise, Milton 
speaks of them as — 

' ' ' Groves whose rich trees wept odorous gums and balm, 
Others whose fruit burnish'd with golden rind 
Hung amiable. . . . 

Betwixt them lawns, or level downs, and flocks 
Grazing the tender herb, were interposed, 
Or palmy hillock, or the flow'ry lap 
Of some well-watered .valley spread her store, 
Flow'rs of all hue, and without thorn the rose.' " 

Mrs. Reed laid down her book. The children were all attention, 
for she had read so clearly that they could catch the meaning of every 
word. Then Grandpa resumed his talk. 

" Into this beautiful home Adam and Eve were put, not to live in 
idleness, nor yet to work hard, but, as the account says, to dress the 
garden and to keep it — a pleasant and beautiful business, I am sure. 
Nothing 1 could be more delightful." 



38 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" How happy they must have been there with their (lowers and 
fruits ! But it must have been lonesome to have no neighbors and 
no children there." 

" They had God very near and very kind to them, Carrie," replied 
Mrs. Reed, " and that was the best of company. They did not know 
what it was to miss neighbors and children, never having had them 
to enjoy." 

" Yes, and God Himself was delighted with the service and society 
of Adam and Eve," said Grandpa. " Plants were splendid, but they 
could not think or feel. Beasts and birds could think and feel, but 
they could not love God. Their gorgeous colors, mighty strength, 
swift motions, and sweet songs were grand as they could be ; but 
man was made in God's own grander image ; he was as much like 
God as a created being can be like the one who made him." 

"Adam and Eve were born giown up, weren't they, Grandpa?" 
asked Charley, catching at a new idea. 

"Well, yes; that is, they never were children. They had neither 
father nor mother, brothers nor sisters. They ruled Over all other 
living- creatures on the earth, and God brought these creatures to 
Adam, and he named them as to him seemed best. Animals were 
not fierce and quarrelsome then as many of them now are, but they 
dwelt together in peace. Eden was a loving and happy home for 
all who were there, whether man or beast." 

" I wonder Adam and Eve did not stay there forever," said Carrie. 
" They must have been so happy." 

" If they had stayed forever all of us would live there now, wouldn't 
we? I'd have had my letters directed to Charley Reed, Paradise, 
Garden of Eden ; I would." 

"That's a great idea," answered Mary. "They did not stay 
though, and we are not there, I'm sorry to say. But how long did 
they stay there, Grandpa ? " 

" We do not know ; probably not very long. But there is a Paradise 
for us, though that was lost. We can find kindred bliss elsewhere. 



A PEEP INTO PARADISE. 



39 



Several times in the Bible this 
name is given to the happy home 
beyond this world. In Revelation 
ii, 7 ; itis called the Paradise of God. 
From this verse we learn that 
the tree of life is in this Paradise. 
Such a tree was in Eden also, but 
after man sinned and was sent out 
of that beautiful place an angel 
kept him from going back to that 
tree to eat of it. In the heavenly 
Paradise, however, all may eat 
of that tree and live forever. 
Adam's Paradise had a river, and 
the Paradise of God has its river 
of the water of life. God walked 
in the first Paradise, and Adam 
and Eve served Him there. In 
the new Paradise saints see God's 
face and serve Him day and night. 
But the best of all is, that into the 
heavenly Paradise nothing shall 
ever enter that can harm and de- 
file us. Into the Garden of Eden 
a tempter did enter, and both 
Adam and Eve sinned and lost 
their home ; but none shall sin 
in heaven nor lose that precious 
home. With the Bible's help we 
may peep into the heavenly Par- 
adise, and we also may be the 

happy people who shall dwell'" Have-dommion over the fish of the sea, and over the 

x *■ J l x fowl of the air, and over every living thing that 

there and be blessed forever." moveth upon the earth."— Genesis i, 28. 




40 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



FEASTING ON FORBIDDEN FRUIT; 

Or, TRIFLING WITH A SERPENT. 



" /^~^\ GRANDPA!" began Carrie, as the family came together 

1 1 after tea ; " I have thought so much to-day about Adam 

^— ^ and Eve. What a pity it was they did not stay in their 
happy home ! Why were they sent out of Eden, anyway ? I don't 
see what great harm there was in eating that fruit." 

" Probably no harm at all in merely eating that fruit. I do not 
suppose it was poisonous, or unwholesome even. The harm was in 
disobeying God. He forbade them to eat that fruit ; they disobeyed 
and did it deliberately. It was as clear a case of refusal to obey as 
ever occurred." 

" Yes, I know that," replied Carrie ; " but then it was so little a 
thing — just to eat some fruit that looked so nice." 

" If it was so little a thing, the greater was the folly of not allowing 
God to have His way about it. But it was not so little as it seems. 
God had said, Do not eat. Adam and Eve each said, I will eat. It 
was pure, simple, inexcusable disobedience of God. Wasn't it, 
Carrie ?" 

"Well, yes, Grandpa. I know it was; I must admit that. But 
why did God let them get into so much trouble about so little a 
matter?" 

" If we really love a person we show it, not by doing things which 
are easy and pleasant to ourselves, but by doing things which are 
hard, which require self-denial, but which please or help the person 
we love. You show love to your mother, not by eating your food 
and enjoying your play, but by leaving your play to serve her, or by 



FEASTING ON FORBIDDEN FRUIT. 41 



omitting some favorite article of food when she thinks it may do you 
harm. So Adam and Eve showed their love to God, not by enjoy- 
ing all that they were free to enjoy, but by doing without the one 
thing which God forbade. Some test of their love was necessary, 
and God made it just one little thing. The result showed that they 
did not love and honor Him enough to yield that one little point. 
They preferred their own way to God's way." 

" Well, Grandpa," said Carrie, in more of a submissive manner, 
" I think I understand it better. They ought to have obeyed God; 
but I am sorry all the same." 

" We are all sorry about it, darling. A great deal of trouble has 
come to the world from that willful disobedience. It turned the lives 
of men into a wrong direction at the very start. It was the pebble 
in the brooklet's bed which turns the course of the entire stream. 
And all this trouble came from trifling with a serpent." 

"Well, I don't understand that," said Mary. "I read about that 
serpent in Genesis iii, and I don't know what it means." 

" To help us understand, suppose Mary reads Revelation xx, 2," 
said Grandpa. 

Mary quickly found the place and read : " He laid hold on the 
dragon,, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound 
him a thousand years." 

" Here we see who is the serpent that did the harm. It is the 
source of all evil and the opposer of all good, known as Satan or 
the devil," said Grandpa. 

" But wasn't there any snake in the business, then ?." asked Charley, 
seemingly disappointed at this explanation of the story. 

" Perhaps not," replied Grandpa. " Satan may have entered into 
a genuine snake, and so have quietly glided up to Eve and talked 
with her ; or. he may have made himself look like a snake, and so 
have come near her ; or he may have come to her in a gliding, 
stealthy way simply, as a snake would approach, and so have sug- 
gested his evil ideas. This is my own notion of the case. He came 



42 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



to her as a snake comes to its prey — stealthily, wickedly, with murder 
in the heart. When, later in the scene, God pronounced a curse upon 
the serpent, it was not meant for snakes, but for the old serpent, the 
vile snakelike tempter Satan." 

"Then Eve did not really see a snake crawling around and did not 
really hear it talk," said Carrie, seemingly much relieved to "-et rid 
of the snake. 

" Probably not," said Grandpa. " The serpent with which she tri- 
fled was Satan; and she did trifle with him. He came asking a ques- 
tion as to what God had really forbidden. He really was twittino- 
her on the fact that she could not do all she pleased, because one 
thing had been forbidden. Eve answered very well at the start, but 
when she was about through she used a little sentence which looks 
suspicious. God has said of this tree, Thou shalt not eat of it. Eve 
adds, Neither shall ye touch it. God had not said this, and it looks 
as though Eve were seeking something to complain of, as if she were 
exaggerating what God had forbidden. On hearing this Satan flatly 
contradicts what God had said. God's words were, In the dav thou 
eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. But Satan said, Thou s'halt not 
surely die. It seems strange that Eve would listen to such' talk. She 
must have known it was wrong ; but she did listen and Satan talked 
on, telling her how much wiser and better she would become if she 
ate the fruit of this tree, and making her think God was not good in 
keeping so good a thing from her. Then Satan left her, but the 
poison of his talk was working in her mind. Mary may read to us 
from the sixth verse, which shows what happened and how it came 
to pass." 

While all listened eagerly Mary read as follows: "And when the 
woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant 
to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise ; she took of 
the fruit thereof, and did eat ; and gave also unto her husband with 
her, and he did eat." 

" That was too bad," said Carrie, with a sigh and a very sad face. 



FEASTING ON FORBIDDEN FRUIT. 



" Yes," said Grandpa ; " instead of resisting Satan and driving 
away every evil thought, she lingered about the tree, looked on its 
fruit, thought of the' benefits Satan promised, and at last took and 
ate the fruit, then ran off to find Adam and persuade him to do the 




" Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the 

garden." — Genesis iii, 8. 

same. When they had done the wrong, they felt ashamed. Then 
they thought of God and were afraid. So they worried through the 
day till the sun began to set and the cool of the day — that pleasantest 
of all times in a beautiful garden — drew near. But Adam and Eve 
found no pleasure in that lovely evening. Their hearts were filled 



44 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

with fear and their cheeks were flushed with shame. Tears gathered 
in their eyes, the first tears ever shed in the world. They wondered 
what God would say and what was the meaning of His threat, thou 
shall surely die. At last God came and they heard His voice, but in- 
stead of bounding joyfully to meet Him they skulked away to a hiding- 
place. Then God called to Adam, Where art thou ? God knew where 
Adam was, but He wished by this call to make Adam know his sad and 
fallen condition. Then God came near to them in their hiding-place. 
There they were among the bushes crouching to the ground, their 
heads bowed down, their tears falling, their hearts full of fear, and 
the old serpent near by gloating over their unhappy fate. How 
wretched to God's pure eyes the world must then have seemed! 
The song of birds, the fragrance of flowers, the glitter of leaves, the 
sport of beasts, must to Him have seemed a fearful mockery since 
man, the lord and master of them all, was crushed with sin and shame." 

" O Grandpa !" cried Carrie, " why didn't God forgive them on the 
spot and let them start over again ?" 

" God was quite willing to forgive them, and I have no doubt did 
freely do so," said Grandpa ; " but for them to start over again, as 
they were before they disobeyed, was as impossible as for me to start 
over again as a boy, or for a cripple to start over again with sound 
limbs. They had sinned, and never again could they be innocent. 
In some other way they could be saved, I am sure, but not as persons 
who had never sinned." 

" I see," said Carrie, " that first good chance was lost, and they 
could not get it back again." 

" Yes ; and God must show His disapproval of the wrong they 
did," said Grandpa, "just as a kind and loving mother must punish 
a child who does wrong, and so, when Adam made an excuse for 
hiding himself, God pushed His questions closer, and Adam, seeing 
he could not escape, confessed, I did eat ; but, said he, the 
woman Thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree. In this 
way he tried to put the blame first on Eve, and also on God who 



FEASTING ON FORBIDDEN FRUIT. 4o 

gave him Eve. That is the way the wicked do. They seldom confess 
themselves at fault ; somebody else, or possibly God Himself, is to 
blame. God condemns nobody without giving them a chance, so He 
asked Eve about it and she blamed the serpent. Then God told 
them the results of their wrong doing. On the serpent he pro- 
nounced a curse more bitter than that upon any creature in existence. 
He was doomed to crawl, to eat dust, to be hated, and at last to have 
his head crushed ; which shows the loathing every good man should 
have for Satan, much as everybody hates snakes and tries to crush 
their heads." 

" I wish they were all killed," said Charley, " and old Satan, too. I 
don't see what they are for, anyhow." 

" Next God turned to Eve," continued Grandpa. " She was in sor- 
row enough at that moment, but God said He would greatly multiply 
it. Not only would He add to it, but He would multiply it; yes, 
multiply it greatly ." 

" Poor Eve," sighed Mary, " she must have been sorry enough. 
And it was her first sorrow, too. She had not been used to it, had 
she, Grandpa ?" 

" No, but she soon came to know enough of it ; and as for Adam, 
God said that in sorrow and in the sweat of his face he should eat 
his bread until he died. The very ground was cursed so that thorns 
and thistles would spring up rather than flowers and fruits. Such was 
the result of feasting on forbidden fruit and trifling with a serpent." 

" Let me add a word in closing, children," said Mrs*. Reed. " You 
may think Satan very powerful, as he really is, but James, in his 
Epistle, says, Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Which of 
you is determined to resist him ?" 

" I,"" shouted every child, and with good resolves they scattered 
for <-he night. 



46 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

LEAVING A HAPPY HOME; 

Or, FROM PEACE AND PLENTY TO TOIL AND TEARS. 



WHEN the family were again assembled, Carrie began with 
the exclamation : 
" Poor Eve ! I have been so sorry for her. I could 
have cried a dozen times to-day. Where did they go after they 
sinned ? and what did they do ?" 

" I am glad," answered Grandpa, " that you have thought so much 
about her. Let it warn my little girl never to disobey God." 

" I'm sure I never want to," she answered, in a most serious tone, 
Charley adding, " No'r do I ;" and Mary, " Nor I." 

" And now," said Grandpa, drawing a roll of paper from his 
pocket and opening it upon the table, "here is a picture by a fam- 
ous illustrator of Bible scenes. I want you to look at it carefully 
and then each tell me what seems the most striking- thine in it. Let 
Mary tell first." 

" They all look so sorry, Grandpa. See poor Eve ! , Adam can't 
bear to look up at all. And the angel seems grieved. The dog, 
even, looks worried and as if he wondered what it meant. Why the 
old serpent himself looks sorry, though I guess it's more mean and 
ashamed that he looks. But oh ! they are so sad !" 

" Just see the thorns and the thistles outside that gate," said 
Carrie, " and the stones. Inside there were none of these, were there, 
Grandpa ? Now they will have to work among briers and all sorts 
of troubles, won't they ?" 

"See that big bird," said Charley, "he's pecking Eve's head, isn't 
he ? and there's another flying over them and squalling at them ; 



LEA VING A HAPPY HOME. 



47 



and there's a wasp or hornet after them, too. O my ! It's too bad 
all these things had to happen. And there's that old snake. If I 
were Adam I'd pick up a stone and whack him on the head, so I 
would. I wouldn't have him crawling near me. But, Grandpa, what 




" The Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was 

taken.'''' — Genesis iii, 23. 

a queer old sword the angel has. It looks as if it was splitting all 
to pieces." 

" That, my boy, is the flaming sword which turned every way to 
keep Adam and Eve from the garden. We read about it in Genesis 
iii, 24," said Charley's mother, who was gazing at the picture. 



48 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" The saddest thing Adam and Eve knew up to that time," re- 
sumed Grandpa, "was the leaving of their happy home. Within that 
place of beauty were peace and plenty ; without were toil and tears. 
Eve's lament on leaving Paradise, written by Milton, from whom we 
have already quoted, is one of the saddest utterances ever spoken. 
Your mother will favor us with part of it." 

Mrs. Reed took up her Paradise Lost and read as follows : 

" O unexpected stroke, worse than of death ! 
Must I leave thee, Paradise ? thus leave 
Thee, native soil, these happy walks and shades, 
Fit haunt of God's ? Where I had hoped to spend, 
Quiet, though sad, the respite of that day 
That must be mortal to us both. O flow'rs, 
That never will in other climate grow, 
My early visitation, and my last 
At ev'n, which I bred up with tender hand 
From the first op'ning bud, and gave ye names, 
Who now shall rear ye to the sun, or rank 
Your tribes, and water from th' ambrosial fount ? 

From thee 

How shall I part, and whither wander down 
Into a lower world, to this obscure 
And wild ? How shall we breathe in other air 
Less pure, accustom' d to immortal fruits ?" 

"Beautiful! but oh! how sad!" said Mary; Carrie meanwhile 
wiping her eyes. 

" Well, my dears," said Grandpa, " you have caught at about all 
the points of the picture. That was the saddest moving that ever a 
family made. They had no furniture or baggage, but they had a 
heavy load on their hearts. And now that they are out of Paradise, 
I will show you another picture. What is this ?" asked Grandpa, as 
he unrolled another engraving and laid it upon the table. 

"Why, there are Cain and Abel," exclaimed Charley, in an instant — 
" Abel with his mother, playing with lambs ; Cain giving an apple to 
his father." 



LEA VING A HAPPY HOME. 



49 



" How tired Adam looks," said Carrie, " and his hair is all matted 
over his face, as if he was sweating dreadfully." 

" Notice," said Grandpa, " the work he is at. There is a great 
thistle, there a thorny bush, and there a heap of stones. Adam 




" In the sweat of thy face shall thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground." — Genesis iii, 19. 

has a poor, roughly-made hoe, with which he has been trying to dig 
out the stones and to cultivate the ground. Cain seems to notice 
that his father is tired, and offers him fruit to refresh him. Eve 
seems sad as she looks upon her little boy, for I suppose she thinks 
of where he might have.been had she not trifled with the serpent." 



50 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" Why did they need so much fence as I see in this picture ?" 
asked Mary. " There was nobody to come and steal, nor any-other 
person's land into which their sheep might get." 

"True, but that fence suggests some other sad truths. Even the 
gentle sheep were not disposed to live quietly with them now. And 
other animals were not disposed to leave the sheep unharmed. The 
peace and plenty of Eden were gone. Fences and force had become 
necessary. Toil and tears were the lot of Adam and Eve, and of all 
their children." 

" O dear, it does seem too bad that so much trouble should have 
come to them," said Carrie, whose sympathies were fully aroused. 
" But they ought to have obeyed God, and I guess they often wished 
they had done it." 

" And that, too, was God's wish," interposed Mrs. Reed. " I have 
no doubt He felt about Adam and Eve as He felt about His people 
at a later day, when He said, O that thou hadst hearkened to my com- 
mandments ! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteous- 
ness as the waves of the sea." 

4< And may we have righteousness and peace that way, by heark- 
ening to God's command ?" 

" Most certainly, Carrie," answered her mother. " That is the 
glory of the Lord's gospel, and you may fully enjoy it." 

"Before we separate, mother," said Mary, "sing that hymn about 
the peace that floweth as a river, please." 

" With pleasure, darling," was Mrs. Reed's reply. Then she sang 
Mrs. Crewdson's beautiful verses, which begin: 

" Oh ! for the peace that floweth as a river, 

Making life's desert places bloom and smile; 
Oh ! for the faith to grasp heaven's bright forever, 
Amid the shadows of earth's little while I" 



BURNING THE FIRST FRUITS. 61 

BURNING THE FIRST FRUITS; 

Or, A WICKED BROTHER'S BRUTAL DEED. 



"/~\NE of the pictures we looked at last night," said Grandpa, 
I 1 after some other conversation had occupied a little of the 

^ — ^ evening, " showed us the first two boys who ever lived. 
Cain, the elder, was with his father, probably trying to help work the 
ground. He grew up a farmer — a tiller of the ground, as the Bible 
calls him. Abel was with his mother, among the sheep, of which, 
probably, she took care, and he grew up a shepherd — a keeper of 
sheep. Cain was probably a stronger, rougher, lad than Abel. He 
was more like the father ; Abel more like his mother." 

" I never did like Cain," said Carrie. " I always thought Abel was 
a orreat deal nicer." 

" Cain, no doubt, was a very troublesome boy. He was self-willed 
and passionate, and his parents knew nothing of the way in which 
such a boy should be trained. He became tyrannical and abusive 
as he grew older ; for nobody suddenly becomes a murderer. The 
heart is full of murder long before the hands do the deed. By the 
continual indulgence of wicked feelings, Cain was prepared for his 
dreadful crime, and killing Abel was only the natural result. Such 
a son must have been a great trouble to his parents ; he added ter- 
ribly to their many* other sorrows." 

" But did they not teach Cain and Abel to love and serve God ?" 
asked Mary. 

" I have no doubt of it," responded Grandpa ; " for the very occa- 
sion of Abel's death was that both he and Cain offered sacrifices, 
and Abel's pleased God, while Cain's did not." 



52 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" What are sacrifices ?" asked Charley. 

" They are gifts to God," explained Grandpa. " Cain brought fruit 
from the fields and Abel brought lambs from his flocks. These were 
the first results of their work and the best offerings that could be 
found by either of them. To show that these gifts were entirely for 




" Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel, he also brought of 
the firstlings of his flock, and of the fat thereof" — Genesis iv, 3, 4. 

the Lord, they were laid on a heap of stones called an altar and were 
entirely burned. Solemnly burning the first fruits of a man's ground 
or flocks was offering sacrifice to God." 

"Why did God want such nice things to be burned?" asked Car- 



BURNING THE FIRST FRUITS. 



53 



rie. " I should think they ought to be saved. The poorer things 
might very well be burned." 

" Why," replied Mary, " God ought to get the best, and unless it 
was burned up it would only be a make-believe gift ; for the man 
would have it for himself after all." 




" It came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew 

him." — Genesis iv, 8. 

" You have the right idea," said Grandpa. " Adam and Eve had 

taught this to their boys, both of whom came to sacrifice to the Lord. 

Abel came with a loving desire to please God, and God was pleased 

with him and his offering. Cain came in some other spirit. Maybe 

4 



54 GRANDPA GOOD WIN" S STORIES. 



he was grudging his gift to God and wishing he could keep it for 
himself. For some reason, however, God was not pleased with Cain 
nor with his offering. How God showed that He was pleased with 
Abel we do not know. Perhaps He kindled fire on Abel's altar 
by a flash of lightning, or He possibly made the fire burn free and 
clear, or He may have appeared in a visible form to Abel, speaking 
words of approval which both Cain and Abel could hear. Cain was 
not so honored, and on this account he became very angry. The 
Bible says his countenance fell — that is, he looked very long-faced 
and sullen about it. God saw all this and talked kindly to him, 
encouraging him to do right, and promising to accept him if he did 
so. But Cain remained sullen and angry and went away plotting 
evil against his brother and not trying at all to do as God wished. 
And so Cain watched his chance, talking angrily with Abel and bully- 
ing him whenever they met. No doubt Abel tried to persuade his 
brother to do right ; but this made Cain all the more angry. One 
day they met out in the field, far away from home. That was Cain's 
chance. Full of angry passion, he started up and killed Abel on the 
spot." 

" That was awful !" exclaimed Carrie, as Grandpa paused. 

" Yes," continued he, "and Cain did it deliberately, having planned 
it for days. It was murder in cold blood, not in haste, nor to save 
his own life. Abel was the first dead man of the world and Cain 
the first murderer. When Abel ceased to breathe, when the color 
left his cheek and his eye became set in death, Cain must have suf- 
fered more than tongue can tell. What had happened he could 
not understand. He had never before seen death. He hurried 
from the place, but God was after him, calling, Where is Abel thy 
brother? Cain did not hesitate to lie, but answered positively, I 
know not ; and then, as if to silence God, he asks, Am I my brother's 
keeper? So saying, he hurried away from the dead Abel, and tried 
to hurry away from God, too." 

"It seems to me," said Carrie, " that nobody could be more wicked 



BURNING THE FIRST FRUITS. 55 



than Cain. He killed his own brother, and so good a brother, and 
killed him just because he was good." 

" It would be hard to find anything more wicked," added Grandpa, 
"but John, the beloved disciple, seems to be afraid that we may be 
as wicked and warns us against being like Cain. Mary, read i John 
iii, n, 12, please." 

Mary found the place in a moment and read: "For this is the 
message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one 
another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his 
brother. And wherefore slew he him ? Because his own works 
were evil, and his brother's righteous." 

"If we don't love one another are we like Cain, then, Grandpa?" 
asked Charley. 

"Assuredly so. And if we prefer evil works to righteous works 
we are like Cain. We'may never kill a person, much less a brother, 
but without love for the holy and the good we are, like Cain, of that 
wicked one, as John says ; that is, we are children of Satan." 

" Or, as the hymn declares," chimed in Mrs. Reed : 

" Love is the golden chain that binds 
The happy saints above ; 
And he's an heir of heaven that finds 
His bosom glow with love." 

"Well, I'm not going to be like Cain," was Charley's emphatic 
declaration as he gathered up his books preparatory to going off 
to bed. 

" Nor any of us, I trust," added Carrie. " People who quarrel and 
fight, who beat and kill each other, all belong to Satan's family. For 
my part, I prefer better company." 

"Good girl!" and "Good night!" were Charley's parting shouts. 



66 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



THE VOICE OF BLOOD; 

Or, A STRANGE CRY FROM THE GROUND. 



h 



" ' ~^ VER since last night," began Mary, when the family was 
again seated in the sitting-room, "I have fancied 1 could 
see Abel lying dead in the field where Cain had left him. 
It was an awful sin for him to kill Abel, wasn't it?" 

"And I," said Mrs. Reed, "have been thinking of his poor mother. 
I am sure Abel was a loving boy, who always hurried home when 
his day's duties were done, and who always greeted his mother with 
a kiss. On the morning of his death he left home alive and we'll, 
full of hope and love, and she had thought of him often as the day 
passed by. At last evening approached and she expected him to 
supper; but he did not come. She looked out from the door, but 
could not see him. I can imagine all the worriment of her motherly 
heart as darkness came and Abel had not returned. She had lon^ 
been afraid that Cain would do harm to Abel ; now she is sure of 
it, for Cain, too, is away. So she spends the night in anxiety. 
Adam only half sympathizes with her. He thinks it will come out 
all right and goes to sleep, but Eve is wide awake. Morning comes, 
and out they go to seek the boys. Abel's sheep are wandering 
without care ; Cain's work lies unfinished ; but where are the bro- 
thers? Eve sees something yonder. It is Abel lying on the ground. 
Is he asleep ? She hurries to him. Adam follows. They reach 
jhe body. It is battered and bloody. It is cold and dead. Eve 
calls, but Abel does not answer. She lifts his head, but it drops 
limp and heavy from her hands. She calls, and calls again, but no 
answer comes. Then she weeps, O so bitterly, over her dear, dead 




FLEEING FROM THE DEAD. 



58 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

boy. This is what I have thought of all day, until my own eyes 
have been full of tears lor that poor bereaved mother." 

When Mrs. Reed ceased speaking, the children were in tears. 
They sat without a word for a few minutes and then Grandpa broke 
the silence by quoting God's words to Eve : " I will greatly multiply 
thy sorrow." 

"Grandpa," asked Charley, as if anxious to change the subject, 
"where did they bury Abel?" 

" I don't know, my boy, but I suppose they did bury him; probably 
right where they found his body. It must have been a very sad fu- 
neral, and it was the first in the world. They probably straightened 
out the cold, stiffened limbs, washed away the blood, wrapped the 
body in skins, and then covered it with earth. All around was still, 
but from that ground there rose to the ear of God a voice, for He 
said to Cain, The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from 
the ground." 

" What does that mean ?" asked Carrie. " Blood cannot speak, 
Grandpa." 

" No, my child ; but to God's mind there was such a demand that 
Cain should be punished that it seemed as if every drop of Abel's 
blood had a voice which cried out for vengeance. To kill a human 
being is an awful crime, and especially to kill one so pure and good as 
Abel, and to do it simply because of his goodness. God heard that 
cry of Abel's blood, and, so far as Cain was concerned, God put a 
special curse on the ground. Cain was a farmer, but no more was 
the earth to yield her strength to him. However skillfullvand hard 
he might toil, he would not get a full return. And he was to be 
restless and unhappy, becoming a fugitive and a vagabond, a 
wanderer on the earth, a tramp, a man whom all should hate and 
none should love." 

"That was a fearful punishment," said Mary, with a shudder. 

" So Cain felt, for his answer to God was, My punishment is greater 
than I can bear. He was afraid, too, that even his kindred would 



THE VOICE OF BLOOD. 59 

want to kill him, but this God would not permit. For men to go on 
killing one another would never -do ; so God put a mark on Cain 
that everybody should know him, and God said that any one killing 
Cain should suffer seven times more penalty than was already in- 
flicted on this wicked man. Then God sent Cain, the first murderer, 
out into the world, away from his own people, to wander alone, and 
to be forever full of fears and anxiety." 

" I'm glad I wasn't Cain," said Charley, as Grandpa was called 
away by a visiting friend. " I guess he felt like killing himself too, 
and it's a pity he didn't do it." 

" Possibly not so great a pity," answered Mrs. Reed. " That 
would have been to add self-murder to the murder already com- 
mitted. Two wrongs never make a right, you know. The true 
course for him would have been that of humble repentance and sin- 
cere reformation. God would have forgiven him ; and while Cain 
could never have undone the great crime "of his life, he could have 
done much to prevent a similar crime in others, and he could have 
spent his days in doing good. But we have no account that he did 
any such thing. He was full of remorse and dread of penalty for 
his sin, but he did not love and practice any better ways." 

" I don't wonder that John, who was so full of love and so good a 
man, warned people against going in the way of Cain. I'm sure I 
never want to be like him in any respect." 

" Well said, Mary," answered her mother. " May we all walk in 
the better and nobler ways !" 



60 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



GREATER AND RICHER; 

Or, FROM FARM LIFE TO CITY SPLENDOR. 



WHERE did Cain go after he killed Abel ?" asked Charley, 
as Grandpa entered the sitting-room. 
" He went away toward the East as a lonely wan- 
derer, into a strange place called the land of Nod, or the land of the 
vagabond, from the fact that he, the chief of vagabonds, went there 
to live." 

" With whom did he live?" asked Mary. " Who was there, Grandpa, 
in that land ?" 

" Nobody at that time, so far as we know, but after a while brothers 
and sisters of his, with their children, came that way and settled. One 
of them Cain afterwards persuaded to share his hard lot and be his 
wife." 

" I wouldn't have married him," shouted Carrie, with an earnest- 
ness that made the others laugh heartily, at which Carrie colored up 
and said even more earnestly, "Well, I'm sure I wouldn't want any- 
thing to do with such a man, much less to keep house for him." 

" Cain may have become a far better man," said Mrs. Reed, sooth- 
ingly. "Very wicked persons sometimes become very good." 

"Yes, I know," answered Carrie, "but I'd rather take my chances 
with somebody who always had been very good." 

" I hope my little daughter will remain as wise when she is grown 
up, and when some son of Cain may put her principles to the test." 

" Never fear for me," was Carrie's merry reply. " But, really," 
continued she, "why did Cain go off? Why didn't he stay just 
where he was ?" 



GREATER AND RICHER. 61 

" We 'are sure," continued Grandpa, " that when Cain started he 
wanted to get away from God and from all talk about Him. This 
is what he meant in Genesis iv, 1 6, where it says, Cain went out from 
the presence of the Lord. He could not get away from God, for 
God is everywhere ; but he could get away from his father and 
mother and from the other children which they probably had at that 
time. By so doing he would have no one to remind him of God and 
of his own sin. That was what he then wanted." 

" Ah," said Mrs. Reed, " Cain's attempt to get away from God 
recalls these verses : 

" Is there throughout all worlds one spot, 
One lonely wild, where Thou art not ? 
The hosts of heaven enjoy Thy care, 
And those of hell know Thou art there. 
Awake, asleep, where none intrude, 
Or 'midst the thronging multitude — 
In every land, on every sea, 
We are surrounded still with Thee." 

"Very true," added Grandpa, "and worthy to be remembered by 
us all. After Cain married he roamed about the countrv, ^ettino- 
his living by cultivating the ground as best he could. Years went 
by, and Cain had children and grandchildren. His family became 
very numerous, and he was a great and rich man among them. 
Some of his descendants were shepherds and herdsmen, having im- 
mense flocks and many cattle. Others were musicians, and some 
were mechanics who wrought in brass and iron. With all this growth 
about him it is not strange that Cain made up his mind to build a 
city, which he did, calling it Enoch, after his eldest son." 

" I wouldn't have done that," said Charley. " I think the country ■ 
is a heap better than any city." 

" But, Charley," replied his good teacher, " Cain had two special 
reasons for doinp- this. God had sentenced him to be a vagabond 
and a fugitive, having no home anywhere ; but if by building a city 



62 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



Cain could settle himself and no more wander up and down the 
earth, he would be glad enough of it. And then he was a farmer, 
but for him the ground was specially cursed. He never prospered 
at this work; but if he could get into a real estate business, selling 




"And he builded a city, and called the name of the city after the name of his son, Enoch" — 

Genesis iv, 17. 

town-lots and houses, he mi^ht do a great c l ea l better. So Cain 
had special reasons for quitting his farm-life and seeking rest in city 
splendor. How much he really gained by it nobody knows, for the 
Bible says nothing more about his history." 

" Don't we know anything more about him ?" asked Carrie. 



GREATER AND RICHER. 63 



" Only this," said Grandpa, " that from the closing verses of Gen- 
esis iv, it is quite certain that Cain himself was killed by Lamech, one 
of his own descendants. This Lamech did kill a man, and in speaking 
of it he says, If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold (which God had said 
should be if any man killed him), truly Lamech seventy-and-seven- 
fold. In speaking thus he seems to make himself the one who re- 
ceives the penalty for killing Cain, and who may himself expect an 
even greater protection because he was in so much greater peril." 

"So Cain died a violent death, as Abel did, and by one of his own 
kindred, too," said Mary, in a thoughtful way. "Well, I think he 
deserved it if ever any one did." 

" Do you think Cain ever was happy after he killed Abel ?" asked 
Carrie. 

"I do not think he could have been," replied Grandpa. "As the 
head of a large family many would honor him. In his work of build- 
ing a city he would rule over many men, but no doubt he carried a 
sad heart and a cheerless face. Possibly his disposition became 
better. He may have learned to control his hasty temper; but the 
man that Lamech killed had wounded him, and was killed for that 
reason. That man probably was Cain, who, it seems from this, still 
struck and beat others when aroused to anger. If Cain was not the 
man whom Lamech killed, however, still murder was committed in 
the city of Enoch, and a city where murder is, is a city where there are 
other fearful crimes. So Cain did not escape from sin and its penalties 
by means of his city life. There is but one city where such escape 
is possible, that is the heavenly Jerusalem. Amid its splendor sin 
is unknown and sorrow never comes." 

"That is the place of which the hymn tells, isn't it, Grandpa? I 
mean the hymn, Jerusalem the golden." 

" Yes, darling, and we will sing a verse or two of that same old 
hymn before we say good-night." Then they sang with real earnest- 
ness and went to their beds to dream of the holy city. 



64 GRANDPA GOODU AYS S I OHMS. 



ALONE. YET NOT ALONE; 

Or, THE UNSEEN COMPANION OF A SINGULAR MAN. 



" T" HAVE but a little while to spend with you this evening," said 
Grandpa, as he seated himself in his favorite chair ; " but I 

-*~ would feel that something was lacking in the day's work if we 
did not have our little talk about a Bible story. I want to tell you 
about a very singular man who had a companion whom nobody saw. 
Can you guess to whom I refer?" 

Guesses were made by all the children, and holy men of every 
period were' named, but the correct name was not given. Grandpa 
then asked, "What was the name of the city built by Cain ?" 

"Enoch," was shouted in reply by the entire group. 

" After whom did Cain name that city ?" 

" After his eldest son." 

'•'Yes," continued Grandpa, "and some years after that there was 
another Enoch, and he it is of whom I will now tell you. His father 
was Jared and his son was Methuseleh, who is famous for what ?" 

" For being the oldest man that ever lived," answered Carrie. 

" How old did he become ?" 

"Nine hundred and sixty-nine years," answered both the girls. 

" Yes ; Methuseleh became very aged and his father was very 
godly. Read what was said of him in Genesis v, 24." 

The place was quickly found, and Mary read, "And Enoch walked 
with God ; and he was not, for God took him." 

" When you are coming home from school, Carrie, with which girls 
do you walk ?" asked Grandpa. 

" With those I like." 




WALKING HEAVENWARD. 



66 GRANDPA GOOD WIN* S STORIES. ■ 

"With those you like and who go your way," added Mary. 

Carrie assented, saying, " Of course, I don't walk with girls who go 
another way any more than I walk with girls who stand still." 

" Well, now," interrupted Grandpa, "just that is the idea I want 
you to get about Enoch. As he walked with God, three things are 
true of him and God. What are they ?" 

"They both walked," answered Mary. "They did not stand still." 

" Yes, they did walk ; that is, both of them made progress. Neither 
God nor men stand still. Men q-o on becoming better or worse all 
the time. This is their walk. We are all walking - . We are eoine 
on — you children to manhood and womanhood ; your father and 
mother to old age; I to my end, which is not far off; all of us, I trust, 
are ooina- to a better world. What other thin«f is true since Enoch 
walked with God ?" 

" God and he loved each other," answered Carrie. 

" Yes, they were pleased in each other's society. That Enoch 
should be pleased with God's company is not surprising, but it is 
strange that God should be pleased with the society of any man ; 
but in Hebrews xi, 5, it is expressly said that Enoch pleased God, 
so we need have no doubt at that point. God and he kept very close 
together, for they were well pjeased with each other. Now, what 
other fact is sure since Enoch walked with God ?" 

"Why, Enoch went God's way,", said Charley. "I guess God 
wouldn't walk in any man's way ; He's too great for that." 

" Correct," said Grandpa. " God has His own perfect way of 
thought, feeling, and action, which He could not and would not 
change to suit a man or an angel. Enoch shaped his thoughts, feel- 
ings, and acts so that they should be like those of God. In this way 
they thought alike, felt alike, and acted alike. Enoch would not go into 
any way where he could not keep company with God Wicked peo- 
ple might coax him, everything in other ways might look very bright 
and pretty, but he walked with God, though he walked alone." 

" Enoch must have been kind of lonesome, walking that way." 



ALONE, YET NOT ALONE. 67 

" Yes, Charley, I presume he was lonesome as men judge of lone- 
someness, and yet he never was alone, though he seemed to be. 
He always had a companion whom nobody else saw, but who to him 
was very real, very near, and very dear. Sometimes he would lift 
up his eyes as if charmed by some beautiful vision, but other people 
saw nothing; sometimes he would look so glad, but others knew 
not why ; he often would talk tenderly, but others knew not to 
whom ; they thought him very queer ; they called him a singular 
man ; but his unseen companion heard his words and spoke tenderly 
in reply. So Enoch was happy, though the reason for it the world 
did not know." 

" Grandpa, I should think Enoch would have become tired of so 
singular a life, even though God did walk and talk with him. It 
seems to me I would want companions whom I could see and talk 
with as I see you and talk with you and others." 

" But, Mary, he did not tire of it. We are told in Genesis that he 
walked with God three hundred years ; so he held out pretty well, 
didn't he?" 

" I should say so," answered Mary, smiling. " But the story also 
says, He was not, for God took him. What does that mean ?" 

" Turn to Hebrews xi, 5, and you will see precisely what it means." 

Mary turned to this verse and read aloud : " By faith Enoch was 
translated, that he should not see death, and was not found, because 
God had translated him." 

" Oh !" exclaimed Carrie. " He was not found anywhere on the 
earth, because God had taken him up to heaven." 

"Yes, God had translated him ; that is, had taken him out of. this 
into another world," added Grandpa. " But long before he was 
taken there were places where he was not. Can you name some of 
them ?" 

"Taverns," began Charley. "In bad company," said Carrie; and 
so they rattled in their answers until theatres, horse-races, beer-shops, 
ball-rooms, street-corners, and many other evil and doubtful places 



G8 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

had been named. Then Grandpa remarked, " He who walks with 
God has pleasanter paths than such places afford, and these paths 
Enoch found." 

" How queer it must have seemed to people who knew Enoch 
when all of a sudden he disappeared," said Charley. 

" Yes, to them his was a mysterious disappearance. They did not 
find him where he used to eat and sleep and walk and pray. They 
sought him everywhere; they found him nowhere. The reason was, 
God had taken him." 

" But why did God take him in this unusual way ?" asked Mary. 

"The reason given in Hebrews is, that Enoch should not see 
death. That terrible experience God determined to spare this dear 
companion of his." 

" That was good," said Carrie. " I wish more of us might be spared 
that too. But if we please God as Enoch did we might be spared 
as he was, I suppose ?" ■ 

"And how may we please God ?" asked Mrs. Reed, looking ten- 
derly at the happy young faces before her. 

" Walking where God wants us to," said Charley. 

"Yes," answered she, "and the Bible tells us where this is. We 
must read His word and keep His ways ; then will we meet our re- 
ward, whether we die or, like Enoch, are translated." 

"That reminds me," said Mary, "of two beautiful verses by 
Bonar. I learned them because I liked them so much: 

" Thy way, not mine, O Lord ! 
However dark it be ; 
Oh! lead me by Thine own right hand, 
Choose out the path for me. 

" I dare not choose my lot ; 
I would not if I might ; 
But choose Thou for me, O my God [ 
So shall I walk aright." 



A HUNDRED YEARS' JOB. 69 

A HUNDRED YEARS' JOB; 

Or, A MARVELOUS PIECE OF JOINER WORK. 



SEVERAL evenings had passed and Grandpa had been unable 
to meet the children for their chat on Bible subjects, but at 
last he was again with them, and they clamored earnestly for 
another story. 

" Well," said the kind-hearted old gentleman, " of whom shall we 
talk to-night ?" 

o 

" Of anybody you please," said Mary. " Everybody interests me 
when you talk about them." 

" Thank you, Mary," said he, smiling. " I will tell you about a 
man who, at five hundred years of age, began a job which lasted a 
century. He was a great-grandson of the oldest man that ever 
lived. Who was that man ?" 

" Methuselah !" shouted they all. 

" But," added Grandpa, with a merry twinkle in his eye, " how 
could he be the oldest man when he died before his own father ?" 

" Why, he couldn't," said Charley, very positively, " or his father 
would have been the oldest man." 

" I know, Grandpa," shouted Carrie, clapping her hands. " His 
father was Enoch, who didn't die at all." 

" Oh ! yes, I forgot," said Charley. " So he did — J mean, so he 
didn't — for God took him to heaven without dying." 

" But who," asked Grandpa, " was the man who undertook this big 
job of work when he was so old ?" 

Silence rested on the company for a moment, and then Mary spoke 
up somewhat doubtfully : " You mean Noah, don't you ? It took 
5 



70 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



hirn a hundred years to build the ark, but I didn't think he was so 
old when he began." 

•• You have hit it, Mary. I mean Noah," said Grandpa. " He was 
one of those singular men who walked with God, as Enoch did. 
And the Bible calls him just and perfect, and says he found grace, or 
favor, in the eyes of the Lord. The rest of the world was so wicked 
that God determined to destroy all men and animals, but Noah and 
his family God determined to save. For this purpose God set Noah 
at that marvelous piece of joiner work — the building of the ark. No 
person sympathized with the good man in his queer undertaking, 
though many must have helped him. I am sure the people laughed 
at him and called him a crank ; but Noah worked away in faith, as it 
is said in Hebrews xi, and moved with fear, too, for he fully believed 
that the flood would come, and so he pushed on with his work." 

" What was the shape of the ark ?" asked Mary. " I have seen ever 
so many pictures of it and no two of them are the same." 

" Nobody can answer that positively," replied Grandpa. " It is not 
likely that it had a rounded prow, like modern ships, for such work 
was then unknown, in all probability, and such a prow would have 
been useless, as the ark was not to sail and to be steered. A great 
covered, scow-like affair, a sort of floating barn, would have answered 
every purpose, and is probably more like the ark Noah built." 

" How big was the ark ?" was the next question. This came from 
Charley, whose mind ran to the practical side of things. 

" That is not positively known," replied Grandpa, " because the 
length of the cubit in which its size is stated is not entirely clear. 
But we are sure that the ark was at least four hundred and fifty feet 
long, one hundred and fifty feet wide, and forty-five feet high, and 
that its appearance was more like an immense block of warehouses 
than an ordinary ship." 

" Why was it made so big, Grandpa, when only one family was to 
sail in it ?" asked Carrie. 

" Because," said Grandpa, " with that family there needed to be 



A HUNDRED YEARS' JOB. 



71 



kept, for a year or more, enough domestic animals to serve for sacri- 
fices and for all future needs of men until another supply could be 
raised. Birds, also, and many other living creatures were to be kept 
there, and immense quantities of provisions were needed for them 
while in the ark and to supply them for a considerable time after they 




"And Noah did according unto all that the Lord commanded him." — Genesis vii, 6. 

should leave it. The greatest ship ever built was the Great Eastern, 
which has about the same carrying capacity as had Noah's ark." 

"How did Noah manage to build such a monstrous affair, with 
nobody to help him?" asked Mary. 



72 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" He worked on it for a long time," said Grandpa. "Xo doubt his 
family and servants worked with him, and at times other help was 
hired as needed. Very likely, the neighbors would occasionally lend 
a hand, by way of a frolic if for no better reason. They cared 
little for his supposed freak, but went on in their own ways, eating, 
drinking, and carousing right before Noah's eyes, and under the very 
shadow of the ark worshiping their dumb idols, while he was hard 
at work." 

" But how could Noah get everything just right ?" asked Carrie. 
" I think he would have made lots of mistakes." 

" God showed him how to do it. The wood to be used, the 
height of the stories, the number and size of the rooms, the window, 
the door — everything, in short, was directed by the Lord, to whom 
Noah was always attentive and obedient. That was the way by 
which he avoided mistakes," said Grandpa. 

" But why didn't other people come and help Noah, and get saved 
in his ark ?" asked Charley. 

" Simply because they did not believe God," was the reply. " I 
am sure Noah urged them, for Peter calls him 'a preacher of 
righteousness,' and Paul says he ' condemned the world,' so we may 
judge that he was not silent. He did preach. At his work and in 
his rest, he told the story over and over, and warned the people of 
the coming flood. Every blow of his axes and hammers was a call 
to men to turn from their sins and be saved, and yet nobody came. 
That is why only Noah and his family were saved. Nobody else 
was willing to enter the ark." 

"' When the work was all done," asked Charley, " did the flood 
come ri^ht off?" 

" No. . The ark was finished, the rubbish was cleared away, and 
it stood complete, but unoccupied, until God one day said to Xoah, 
' Come thou and all thy house into the ark.' Seven days were then 
allowed them to get settled in the great boat. It was a busy week. 
Xoah's family, the beasts, the birds, the food, the seed, everything 



A HUNDRED YEARS' [OB. 73 



needed for the long voyage and die wonderful change which was at 
hand, was brought and stowed away safely; and then the 'Lord shut 
him in ' and shut out all the world besides. So the hundred years' 
job was ended, the ark was occupied, and everything was ready for 
the threatened flood." 

"Oh! tell us about that," cried Charley. 

" Yes, do, please do," echoed Mary and Carrie ; but Grandpa 
shook his silvery head and said, " Not to-night, my dears. To-mor- 
row night we will talk about that, if nothing prevent." 

"I remember," said Mrs. Reed, "a little tract I saw when I was a 
girl. Its title was NoaJis Carpenters^ 

"Noah's carpenters!" exclaimed the children, Mary asking, "Who 
were they, pray?" 

" Why," answered their mother, " the men who at one time and 
another did work on the ark. Though they helped prepare the 
vessel which saved Noah and his family, yet they themselves were 
lost. They built an ark, but for them it did no good. They are 
dead, but many of the same stock live to-day." 

" Why who, mother, are like them to-day ?" asked Carrie. "I don't 
know anybody who is so foolish." 

" Don't you, darling? Let us see. Sunday-school children who 
gather in the poor or contribute their money to send tracts and books 
to the destitute or to aid the work of missions, and yet do not for them- 
selves enter the ark of God's full service, are like Noah's carpenters. 
Parents who instruct their children in the doctrines of the gospel, 
and yet fail to illustrate these doctrines in their lives and to seek a 
personal interest in the Lord's work, are like Noah's carpenters." 

" Oh ! I see, I see," answered Carrie, " and I, for one, will try to be 
in the ark." 

"And I," answered Mary; to which Charley gave his not uncom- 
mon," Me too." 



74 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORJES. 

TOO WICKED TO LIVE : 

Or, THE GREATEST STORM ON RECORD. 



"T"'VE been thinking about the people who were shut out of the 
ark, Grandpa," said Carrie, opening the conversation of another 
-*- evening. " Why were they shut out and drowned ?" 

" Because the world had become so full of wickedness that God 
determined to destroy all its inhabitants. They were too wicked to 
live. God gave them time to repent though. For a hundred years 
or more work on the ark went ahead, and Noah preached to them. 
But they did not become better; so at the end God shut them out of 
the ark and they all perished." 

" Mustn't they have felt awfully when they saw the ark shut?" said 
Mary. 

"I doubt it," replied Grandpa. "The final loading up of the ark 
was probably a great frolic for them. Getting in the animals and 
provisions was like a circus day in a country town. Everybody turned 
out to see the sights. Some may have had misgivings ; but there 
was no sign of a storm, so they quieted their fears. Perhaps a few 
had anxiety in the stillness of the night which followed, but when 
clouds began to gather and torrents of rain to fall, then, no doubt, 
they were full of fear and wished themselves safely in the ark." 

"It must have rained mighty hard to make a flood big enough to 
drown everybody." 

"It did rain hard, sure enough, Charley." replied Grandpa — "so 
hard that the Bible says, The windows of heaven were opened. Win- 
dows mean flood-gates — gates which keep back floods of water. It 
rained as if such gates were opened in the skies, allowing fearful 



TOO WICKED TO LIVE. 75 



torrents of water to be poured upon the earth. It may be that up 
to that time rain had" never fallen, which would make these torrents 
a fearful surprise. It is said also that the fountains of the great deep 
were broken up ; that is, the waters rolled in over the land as if their 
banks had been washed away. Men then lived east of the Mediter- 
ranean Sea where a slight sinking of the ground would permit water 
to flow from the Black and Caspian Seas on the north, from the Pa- 
cific Ocean by way of the Red Sea and Persian Gulf on the south, 
and from the Mediterranean Sea on the west. By causing the land 
to sink even a little, this whole country would quickly be under water 
deep enough to cover every hilltop." 

" But I don't see, Grandpa, how the sinking of that one part of the 
earth could make a flood all over the world." 

" I do not suppose there was a flood over all the world, Mary. All 
the world inhabited by man was flooded. What need was there of 
more ? What the Bible says applies to this narrower limit just as well 
as to the entire world. Nor do I suppose all existing animals went 
into the ark. Why should they ? All such as might be destroyed 
by the flood went in and were saved." 

" That's a new idea," exclaimed Mary, " but I must admit it seems 
to be right." 

" Were n't there lions and tigers in the ark, Grandpa ?" 

" Why should there be, my boy ? They live far beyond where the 
flood reached and were in no danger of being blotted out, even though 
some of them were drowned. I don't believe any wild animals were 
there, though in this opinion I have against me all the picture-books 
and Noah's arks of the toy stores." 

" Pshaw ! the ark wasn't half as grand, then, as I thought it was." 

"You thought it was a menagerie, didn't you, Charley?" asked 
Mary, with a laugh. Charley made no answer, but looked cross. 

" How long did the flood last?" asked Carrie. 

" Rain fell forty days and nights, but the ground continued to sink 
even longer, and the flood rose forty days more. Then the waters 



76 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

stood over the hilltops for a hundred and fifty days. Then they 
began to flow. off as the land rose again, and at the end of seven 
months the ark rested on the top of Mount Ararat. In two more 
months lower hilltops appeared. In forty days more Noah sent out 
a raven, which found plenty of dead bodies to feed on and did not 
return to the ark. Next he sent out a dove, which found nothing- 
suiting its pure tastes, so it came back. After another week the 
dove was sent again, and this time it brought back a branch from an 
olive tree, which showed that the trees were budding. In another 
week the dove was sent again, but it did not come back. Noah 
then knew that the ground was fit for man to live upon. It was one 
year and ten days from the time Noah went into the ark till God told 
him to go out of it." 

" Mustn't there have been fearful suffering during that flood?" said 
Carrie, sadly. 

" No doubt there was," replied Grandpa. " When rain began to 
fall and water to flow in from the seas the people were startled, but 
they hoped it would soon be over. The first night must have been 
terrible. Driven from their houses, they huddled together on higher 
ground. Men, women, children, cattle, sheep, horses, dogs, and even 
wild beasts, were there. All were wet, cold, shivering, panic-stricken. 
The awful night dragged through only to bring a day of terrors. 
Cattle bellowed, sheep bleated, dogs howled, men shouted, women 
screamed, children cried. Some, caught in the rushing waters, were 
quickly drowned; others clambered to higher places, and were there 
overtaken by the rising waters ; some reached the highest hilltops, 
but death reached them even there; some died from fright, some from 
exposure, some from hunger, but more by drowning. Men, beasts, 
birds, and serpents clustered on the highest places, all strugcrling for 
life. Still the waters rose until every trace of life was gone except 
the ark, which floated in safety over a deluged world." 

" That was awful," said Charley. " I'm glad I wasn't there." 




THE DOVE SENT FOR 1 H.— By Bore. 



78 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

THE BOW OF BEAUTY; 

Or, A TOKEN OF GOOD THINGS TO COME. 



" S s RANDPA, yau said it was a year and ten days that Noah 
I -y was in the ark. But the ark rested on the mountain long 
^-^ before that. Why didn't Noah go out of the ark sooner?" 

" Noah did not go into the ark, Carrie, till God commanded it. al- 
though the ark had been finished for some time ; nor would he go 
out of it till God commanded it, though he knew the earth to be 
dried. He obeyed God in all things. Neither his own opinions, his 
curiosity, nor anything else was allowed to rule him. He waited till 
God said, Go forth of the ark. Then he and all that were in the 
ark did go forth, and right glad they were to do so, I am sure. I 
can imagine how the birds soared, the animals capered, and Noah's 
family sang praises as they came down the gangway of the ark and 
stood once more on dry land." 

" They must have been glad to walk ■out again after having been 
shut up more than a year." 

"Yes, Mary. And what do you suppose was the first thing they 
did after leaving the ark?" asked Grandpa. 

" I know what I would have done," said Charley. " I would have 
ran off to see how things looked after the flood and to see what I 
could find." 

" Many other people would have done just so, Charley," added 
Grandpa ; " but Noah and his sons began rolling great stones 
together with which to build an altar. They then took one of every 
suitable beast and bird, and having killed them beside the altar, the) 1 
burned their bodies as an offering to God. This showed their grati- 



THE BOW OF BEAUTY. 



tude, and God was pleased. It was no great thing, but it came from 
loving hearts. It was like the loving little things which children do 
sometimes, and which make their parents very happy. As the 
smoke of those sacrifices went up to heaven, the Lord was pleased 
that He should be remembered in that way." 




" And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his so?zs' wives with him." — Genesis viii, 18. 

" God had been very good to them and they ought to be good to 
Him," said Carrie. 

" And yet," remarked Mrs. Reed, " we are not always willing to 
serve God first. We usually please ourselves and then ask how we 



80 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



may please God. With Noah God was first — as He always should 
be." 

"So well pleased was God with Noah and his children," resumed 
Grandpa, "that He promised them many excellent things. They 
were to become a very numerous family; to rule over all crea- 
tures; to eat any food they wished; their lives were to be pro- 
tected, and never again was the world to be drowned. This last 
point was the great dread of men just then. The flood had been 
awful ; it had washed away all the people of the world except those 
in the ark ; but now, having promised that another flood should 
never come, God gave a token or sign of that fact. But Mary may 
read of this from Genesis ix, 12-16." 

Mary's Bible was at hand, and she read as follows : " And God 
said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me 
and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual 
generations. I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a 
token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall 
come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow 
shall be seen in the cloud : and I will remember my covenant, which 
is between me and you, and every living creature of all flesh; and 
the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And 
the bow shall be in the cloud ; and I will look upon it, that I may 
remember the everlasting covenant between God and every livino- 
creature of all flesh that is upon the earth." 

"Wasn't there any rainbow until then ?" asked Charley. 
"I suppose not," said Grandpa. "The rainbow is caused by the 
sun shining through drops of rain, the colors thus produced being 
thrown on a screen of cloud beyond. It had probably never rained 
till the flood came. No rainbow could have been seen, then, up to 
the time Noah came out of the ark. But rain was to fall after that, 
and with rain comes the possibility of a rainbow, and that was always 
to be a token of God's crood-will." 

" Well," remarked Mrs. Reed, " I never understood that rainbow. 



THE BOW OF BEAUTY. 



81 



It certainly was a very appropriate as well as beautiful emble'm. 
Where better could God write His promise never again to destroy 
the earth with a flood than on the very clouds out of which comes 
the rain ? Whenever again I look at a rainbow I shall be glad of 
God's promise, of which it reminds me." 




" I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth."— 

Genesis ix, 13. 

"And so shall I," added Mary. 
" And I," " and I," said the other children. 

" Did any of you notice, as Mary read a moment ago, what God 
said He would do when He looked upon the rainbow ?" 



82 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



None answered; but Mary's eye ran over the verses, and she 
shouted : " Well, really, Grandpa ! God said, I will look upon it, that 
I may remember the everlasting covenant. As if God could foro-et 
anything !" 

" Not that He was in danger of forgetting unless the bow reminded 
Him," said Grandpa ; " but that when we look on the rainbow we 
may think of God and know that He looks on it also and thinks 
of us." 

" That is perfectly splendid !" exclaimed Carrie. " He and we 
look at the same beautiful bow and think about each other. Don't 
we?" 

" There are two references to the rainbow in the book of Revela- 
tion. You have the idea of the natural rainbow so clearly that I 
would like your opinions of these others. Revelation x, i, tells of a 
mighty angel coming down from heaven, clothed with a cloud and 
having a rainbow up'on his head. What do you think this means?" 

"That he comes as clouds come," answered Mary; " to bring a 
storm ; but that he will not destroy everybody, for the rainbow is 
there." 

"Well explained, my girl! You will soon do for a teacher. But, 
Carrie, what think you of Revelation iv, 3 ? There we read of a 
great throne set in heaven and the great King sitting upon it. But 
it is said, There was a rainbow round about the throne. What do 
you understand by that?" 

" Why, that while God is King and does rule over all, still the great 
object about His throne is the rainbow, which He has made a token 
of good. So nobody need be afraid of Him, but everybody may 
love and come to Him." 

"Well said, Carrie!" added Grandpa. "Let us all, when we look 
to God, remember the rainbow, and when we look to the rainbow, let 
us remember God." 



MAKING FUN OF HIS FATHER. 83 

MAKING FUN OF HIS FATHER; 

Or, WHEN WINE IS IN WIT IS OUT. 



" "\ ~\ THAT became of Noah and his children after the flood ?" 
\/\/ began Carrie on the next evening after the rainbow 
* talk. " I have wondered all sorts of queer things." 

" We do not know much about them," said Grandpa, as he ad- 
justed his glasses ; " and what we do know is not entirely pleasant. 
They came out of the ark full of praise to God and went to work 
with energy. Before the flood they had been shipbuilders for a 
hundred years or more ; but that job was done, and Noah went to 
farming. They had no friends or neighbors, but were just a family 
by themselves. Before long they had troops of little children play- 
ing around and making their homes happy. Of course, they wanted 
some, fruit on the farm ; so Noah set out a vineyard — and a splen- 
did one it was, no doubt. In due time grapes were gathered and 
the juice was preserved. It was a pleasant and wholesome drink, 
and they put away some of it for future use. But in time grape- 
juice will ferment and become intoxicating wine ; and this happened 
with the grape-juice of Noah's vineyard. One day Noah wanted 
grape-juice, and in drinking it he found its flavor had changed. But 
it was very pleasant, and, ignorant of its effects, Noah drank on 
until he became drunk and fell over on his tent-floor in a heavy 
drunken sleep. Good man that he was — able as he had been to dis- 
regard the opinions of all the world for a hundred years and to work 
at that ark — yet when he drank wine he sank helpless to the ground 
and lay there in shame, like the commonest drunkard." 

" That was too bad," said Carrie, her quick sympathy taking in 



84 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

the situation. " It reminds me of the saying, When wine is in wit is 
out ; for I'm sure Noah lost his wits when lie took that wine." 

"Any man loses his wits that way," said Grandpa. "Intoxicating 
drink has spoiled more good men and ruined more happy homes 
than any other ten causes." 

" He ought to have joined our temperance society," said Charley. 
"We boys don't mean to lose our wits." 

"That Noah became drunk is very sad," continued Grandpa. 
" But that, I think, was an accident. He did not know the strength 
of what he drank. But as he lay there in his drunken stupor, his 
second son, Ham by name, came along and saw his father. Instead 
of feeling an honest grief or shame, he ran off to tell his brothers — 
as though it were a good joke, a thing to laugh at. He really made 
fun of his aged father instead of trying to conceal his pitiable condi- 
tion. Ham's conduct was not an accident. It was a base, unworthy 
act ; and God is angry with every child who does not honor his father 
and his mother." 

" What did the other fellows say ?" asked Charley, much inter- 
ested in the unfolding of the plot. " Did they make fun, too. We 
boys make fun of drunken men often." 

" Not they, Charley," answered Grandpa. " Noah was their father 
and they honored him, even if he was drunk ; so they took a large 
garment like a cloak or shawl, and holding it between them, they went 
backward into the tent and covered it over their father so that not 
even themselves should see the condition in which he was. They 
were not disposed to make fun, but rather to hide their father's 
wrono-." 

" Thev were noble, ^ood sons !" cried Mary, in a burst of enthusi- 
asm. ■ " I like them for that." 

" What did Noah say when he woke, Grandpa ?" questioned 
Charley, anxious to get at the end of the case. 

" He slept — we know not how long — and when he awoke he found 
out what had been done. He was covered with that varment, and 



MAKING FUN OF HIS FATHER. 



85 



he naturally asked who had put it over him, and why So the truth 
came out, and Noah was indignant. He spoke some terrible words ; 
but he spoke them, not in anger of his own, but for God, who was 
anory too. Ham had a favorite son named Canaan. I am sure he 




" Noah awoke from his wine, and hnezct what his younger son had done icn/o him : and he said. 
Cursed be Canaan. — Genesis ix, 24, 25. 

loved his son very much and would rather have suffered himself than 
have had his dear boy suffer. But Noah said, Cursed be Canaan ; 
a servant of servants shall he be. Ham heard- these words, and 
the precious son was doomed because of the father's sin. Ham had 
grieved his father, and in turn was to be grieved in his own son." 
6 



86 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



"But in what way was Canaan cursed, Grandpa? What harm 
came to him ?" asked Carrie. 

" From him descended those nations — the African, for instance — 
which have always been the servants and burden-bearers of the 
world." 

"That seems too bad," said both girls, together. " But Ham was 
a mean, bad man," added Mary, to which Charley added a very 
solemn " That's so." 

" On the other two sons," continued Grandpa, " Noah pronounced 
blessings, and said that Canaan's children should be their servants. 
All we know more about Noah is that he lived until he became nine 
hundred and fifty years old and then died." 

" Why, Grandpa," continued Carrie, in a serious way, " I thought 
no good man could get drunk." 

" No good man willingly does anything which debases himself and 
sets a bad example to others, which drunkenness certainly does. 
Accidents may happen, as to Noah ; tastes for intoxicating drink 
may be inherited, as in the children of drunkards ; men may be so 
weak morally as to be unable to resist temptation, but still it re- 
mains true, as Solomon said, Wine is a mocker, strong drink is 
raging, and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise." 

" That reminds me, Grandpa, of some verses from Proverbs which 
I learned because they seemed so good and true. May I repeat 
them?" 

" Certainly, darling. I would gladly see each of you so firm that 
your wits would never go out because wjne came in." 

Mary then repeated from Proverbs xxiii, 29-32, these words: 
"Who -hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who 
hath babbling ? who hath wounds without cause ? who hath redness 
of eyes ? They that tarry long at the wine ; they that go to seek mixed 
wine. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth 
his color in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. At the last it biteth 
like a serpent and stingeth like an adder." 



TOO BIG A JOB. 87 



TOO BIG A JOB ; 

Or, A SUDDEN CHANGE OF PLAN. 



H 



OW did it come, Grandpa," began Mary, " that the people 
of the world got so far apart in their looks and their lan- 
guages ? If they all came from Noah, it seems to me they 
would be more like each other than they are." 

" That is a very natural question, my child. We have seen all the 
people of the world as one family, in one ark, and on one farm, and 
yet we now find many races of men very different from each other 
in looks and in languages, as you say. While Noah still lived his 
children and grandchildren became very numerous, and scattered in 
all directions in search of good places to live. Toward the east, 
where the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers flow, they found a splen- 
did level country, very rich in soil, and here many of them settled. 
By and by they concluded to build a city, as Cain had done before 
the flood. The soil was good for making bricks. They found also 
plenty of bitumen, or pitch, which they used as mortar to cement the 
bricks together, and so they built their city. As they went on an- 
other great idea struck them. Some one proposed to build a tower 
that should reach to heaven, and at this big job they went." 

" How foolish ! Why, they couldn't reach heaven, could they ?" 
" No, Carrie, that was too big a job. The great pyramid of Egypt 
is only some six hundred feet high. That is the greatest work of 
man so far as height goes, and yet it scarce reaches the lowest clouds. 
But they probably did not expect to build so high that they could step 
off into heaven from their top story. It is more probable that their 
idea was to build so high that they would be safe from another flood." 



88 GRA NDPA GOOD WIN ' S S TORIES. 

"But God had said there shouldn't be another flood," said Charley. 

" True; but people do not always believe what God says, and these 
people seem to have forgotten God entirely, for when the building 
of the tower was proposed they said, Let us make us a name. 
They had no regard to God, but wished only to make themselves 
famous." 

" Why," said Carrie, " I always thought that tower — the tower of 
Babel, I mean — was to honor God, like the steeples on our churches." 

" No, dear ; it was to honor its builders, and nobody else. They 
did have one other idea — they might be attacked by enemies, in which 
case the tower would be a splendid place of safety. In its upper 
stories they could so defend themselves that no enemy could reach 
them. This would prevent their being captured or scattered from 
that place. But God is never at a loss for a way to baffle bad 
men. He saw what they were doing and heard what they said, and 
He made His own plan for doing just what they did not want done." 

" But, Grandpa," interrupted Charley, " what harm was there in 
wanting to stay in a nice place ?" 

" None at all, my boy ; God did not object to that. But He saw 
how proud and selfish they were getting, and He said, Nothing will 
be restrained from them which they have imagined to do. He knew 
that they would not stop to ask whether a thing was right or wrong, 
whether it pleased God or not, but if they wanted it they would go at 
it — so God decided to scatter them. And how do you suppose He 
did it? He changed the language each leader spoke, so that not one 
of them could understand another. There they were at their work, 
talking as usual, giving and receiving orders, but suddenly one spoke' 
words no one else understood. The others suppose him to be in 
fun and answer him in fun. But no one understands what the others 
say. Every man thinks himself to be talking sense and others to 
be talking nonsense — so they talk and jabber in the worst way." 

"Ha, ha, ha," roared Charley. "What fun that must have been!" 

" Not much fun for them," replied Grandpa, smiling at the boy's 



TOO BIG A JOB. 



89 



Sflee. "The fact is that men would not stand much of that without 
getting angry. It is quite likely that some did lose their tempers 
and that they came to blows." 

" Ha, ha, that's so," said Charley, slapping his hand vigorously on 




" So the Lord scattered them abro'ad front thence upon the face of all the earth : and they left off tt 

btdld the city." — Genesis xi, 8. 

his knee. " Big time they must have had quarreling and fighting 
each other, Guess they didn't work much more that day." 

" No, nor any other day. They gave up that job and left off to 
build the city. Such a sudden change of plan men seldom make 5 
and never was a change made for so odd a cause." 



90 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" But couldn't any one understand another? Did every one have 
a new language ?" asked Mary. 

" For each one to have his own language and understand nobody 
else would have split thern entirely into fragments. The probability 
is that each family had its own language, so that when a man packed 
his tools and went home from the tower he found his own folks quite 
able to talk with him. This would only make each the more certain 
that his talk was correct and that the others were all wrong. They 
had known but one language up to that time, and they had no idea 
that there could be another." 

" Ha, ha, ha," burst out Charley again in a most boisterous man- 
ner ; " what a time the boys must have had trying to talk ! I'll bet 
they made faces and called hard names before they quit." 

"And the mothers, too," said Mrs. Reed, "when they tried to ex- 
plain things and make peace among the children, what a time there 
must have been !" 

"And the girls, too," said Carrie; "dear me! I'm glad I wasn't 
there. I don't like quarrels and making faces." 

" You see," said Grandpa, " that the elements of a first-class row 
soon gathered in that city, and the only thing that could be done was 
to separate. The very thing they once meant not to do they now were 
glad to do. God brought this about by His skill and power. He 
knows just how to overturn the best laid plans of the wicked." 

" I don't wonder," said Mary, " that the place was called Babel. 
That means confusion, and things did get rather mixed there." 

" And our word babble, meaning the noises made by babes, came 
from the same word," said Mrs. Reed. " The people there babbled 
— used sounds without meaning — one to another." 

" So it came to pass that families were separated one from another 
in location as well as in language," said Grandpa. " Living for ages 
in different lands, under different conditions of food, water, shelter, 
and employment, permanent changes were made in the appearances 
of the people, such as Mary asked about when our chat began." 



SURPRISED AND DELIGHTED. 9* 

SURPRISED AND DELIGHTED; 

Or, THE FIRST SIGHT OF A SPLENDID INHERITANCE. 



TERE is another Bible .picture," said Grandpa Goodwin, un- 
rolling an engraving and spreading it on the table. " I 
-*- -*- want you to look it over carefully and tell me what you 
suppose it to show." 

After a good deal of looking and talking, the children agreed they 
could not tell. Nothing in the picture reminded them of anything 
they had read or heard of in the Bible. 

Grandpa then followed with the question : " What to you, Mary, 
is the main thing of this picture ?" 

" The angel who is directing the company. He seems to be point- 
ing them to the country off to the left, toward which they are all 
looking." 

" And who are the persons riding, Carrie ?" 

" I don't know their names," replied she ; " but there is an old man 
in the middle with a young man and a young woman. They look 
surprised ; but whether at something pleasant or not, I'm not sure." 

"What have you to say about the picture, Charley?" 

" I was wondering about those boys who are cutting capers in front 
of the donkeys. They'll get run over if they're not careful. Any- 
how, I'd rather walk than ride a donkey. But if I were there, I'd 
get on one of the camels. I'd like to ride on a camel." 

"You get the points of ,the picture very well," said Grandpa; 
"but what it represents you don't catch. Mary, please read Genesis 
xii, 4, 5." 

Mary turned as directed and read thus : " So Abram departed, as 



<J2 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



the Lord had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him : and Abram 
was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. 
And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all 
their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had 




" They went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they earned — 

Genesis xii, 5. 

gotten in Haran ; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan ; 
and into the, land of Canaan they came." 

" We can all tell now who the people are," said Mrs. Reed, as 
Mary finished the verses, to which the children responded by point- 
ing out one and another of the persons, and saying, as the did so : 



SURPRISED AND DELIGHTED. 93 

"That's Abram;" "And that's Sarai ;" "This is Lot;" "Here are 
the servants;" "Here are the flocks," and so on until almost every 
point of the picture was covered by some one. Then Charley asked : 
" Who's boys are these ? — Abram's ?" 

" No," answered Grandpa ; " Abram haa no boys ; nor had Lot — 
so far as we know. They are probably children of some of the ser- 
vants ; but Abram allows the lads to cut capers, as you put it, and to 
have a good time as they journey on." 

" Do, Grandpa, tell us the story about Abram. I want so much 
to hear about this journey," said Carrie ; and the others heartily 
seconded her request. 

On this invitation, Grandpa settled himself in his chair and began : 
''About four hundred years after the flood, when the inhabitants of 
the world had again become very many, there was a man named 
Abram, who lived at Ur, in the land of Chaldea, away to the east of 
Palestine. When he was over seventy years old, God told him to 
leave his own country and all his kindred and go to a place which 
should be shown him. Where that place was, or what it was, Abram 
did not know. But he started, as Paul says of him, Not knowing 
whither he went." 

" Good for him !" exclaimed Charley. " He wasn't afraid to travel 
if he was old. Was he ?" 

" No. But though he started so well, he did not fully obey God 
and leave his kindred ; for he took Terah, his father, and Lot, his 
nephew, with him. No doubt he loved them ; but he had been told to 
leave them, and he ought to have done just that. When they had gone 
about half way on their journey they stopped at a place called Haran^ 
where, after a delay of two years, Terah died. After his death Abram 
started again to go into Canaan, and into Canaan he did go, as Mary 
read. As he entered this land from Haran he passed along the hills 
at the foot of the Lebanon mountains, and off to his left, as shown in 
the picture, the promised land could be seen. Its hills and valleys ; 
its famous river, the Jordan ; and its great lake, the Sea of Galilee — 



94 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

all were clearly seen. Abram had always lived in a flat country, so 
that the view of this splendid, rolling land must have been to him 
particularly charming. It would surprise and delight him at every 
step of his journey. Charmed by his new surroundings, Abram 
journeyed on into the very heart of the country. Wherever he 
stopped on his way he built an altar and worshiped God, who had so 
kindly led him. This is the journey shown in the picture. It was 
one in which they had reason to be happy every moment." 

"So I think," said Charley. "And now I don't wonder the boys 
are dancing along in such a jolly way." 

" But no man's path is always full of sunshine," resumed Grandpa. 
" Abram soon found that his two years' delay in Haran was to cost 
him very dearly. A famine was just then beginning in Canaan. The 
water failed, the grass dried, and no food could be found. Had 
Abram reached there two years sooner he would have been ready 
for this trouble. But what could a stranger do who had just arrived 
in the country? So Abram could not stop in Canaan. He had to 
move on and on toward the south and southwest, until he came to 
Egypt. Here was plenty of food. But after a while he had trouble 
with the King, who wanted to marry Abram's wife. Abram could 
not stay there any longer ; so back again he went to Canaan, sorry 
enough, I am sure, that he had lost those two years at Haran." 

"Guess the boys didn't dance so much that time," said Charley, 
with a shrug of his shoulders. 

" Probably not, Charley," added Grandpa. "But when they got 
back to Canaan the famine was over and all the country was green 
and beautiful. Then Abram was ready really to settle in the land 
and the boys were ready once more to cut their capers." 

"All's well that ends well," added the boy, feeling that the end 
was all that could be desired. 



TRUE NOBILITY. 95 



TRUE NOBILITY; 

Or, STOOPING TO CONQUER. 



" T \EFORE Abram went into Egypt," began Grandpa, as the 
r^A family was awaiting the expected talk, " he had stopped at a 
-*■ — place called Bethel. It is up on the highlands of Palestine, 
northeast of the city of Jerusalem. Toward the east of Bethel this 
high ground falls off rapidly to the plain of Jericho. This plain is a 
rich, broad piece of land, east of which the Jordan flows. The Jordan 
is very crooked and rapid, rushing and tumbling on its way from the 
Sea of Galilee on the north to the Dead Sea on the south. From 
Bethel one looks down upon the river winding through its beautiful 
green banks and stretching away mile after mile in either direction. On 
that high ground, overlooking the beautiful river scene below, Abram 
and Lot pitched their tents when they came back from Egypt. Both 
of them had become very rich, having immense flocks of sheep and 
herds of cattle, with tents, slaves, silver, and gold. Indeed, they had 
such great possessions that the place where they settled was not big 
enough for them; and their servants, for the want of room, fell to 
quarreling and fighting among themselves. This was a great grief 
to Abram. The old inhabitants of the land saw it and sneered at 
him and his religion because his servants behaved so badly. Abram 
at last determined to stop this disgraceful conduct, and how do you 
suppose he did it?" 

:i I know what I'd have done if I'd been Abram," responded Charley, 
shaking his head with a decided air — " I'd have bounced every fellow 
that quarreled. I wouldn't have had such chaps about the place." 
" 1 think he would have done better to clear out Lot bag and bag- 



96 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

gage," said Mary, warmly. " God did not tell Abram to take Lot, 
anyway, but to leave him. Abram brought Lot along, and had been 
a good, kind uncle to him, and now that Lot had grown rich he had 
grown saucy too. It was mean of him to let his men interfere with 
Abram's. Abram had the best right there. God called him, but 
didn't call Lot." 

"Well! well!" exclaimed Grandpa, with an amused look, "Abram's 
interests are not likely to suffer in your hands, Mary. But what you 
say is really very forcible. The probability is that Lot came with 
Abram solely because he saw a chance to make money. When he 
and Abram had come to be in each other's way, Lot should have 
stepped out of the way." 

"Abram would have done just right had he driven Lot off," sug- 
gested Carrie. 

" He might have done that," answered Grandpa, " or he might have 
talked with Lot and insisted on his going, or he might have claimed 
the land as his by gift from God. Then, too, as the younger, Lot 
should have given way to his elder and superior, as Abram certainly 
was; but Lot did not move in the matter. He did not seem troubled 
over the quarrels of the men nor concerned about what the neighbors 
thought. At last, therefore, Abram called Lot aside, and what, sup- 
pose you, he said ?" 

" Get away, or I'll blow you out," shouted Charley. 

" Oh ! no, Charley ; Abram did not talk like a thoughtless boy," in- 
terposed Mrs. Reed, "and I am glad he did not." 

" Mary may turn to Genesis xiii, 8, 9, and see what he said," added 
Grandpa. 

Mary found the place and read as follows : "And Abram said unto 
Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and 
between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren. Is not 
the whole land before' thee ? Separate thyself, I pray thee, from me. 
If thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right : or if thou 
depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left." 




ABRAM'S MAGNANIMOUS OFFER. 



98 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Wasn't that splendid ?" exclaimed Mary, as she finished reading. 
" That was really noble, wasn't it, Grandpa ?" 

" It certainly was. Abram did show true nobility in this offer. 
Instead of clamoring for his rights or acting selfishly, he waived 
them all and at once settled the trouble. In short, he stooped to 
conquer. He made himself the less that he might secure peace, 
and in so doing he became immensely the greater. He acted ac- 
cording to a rule which Jesus put into words 2,500 years later, when 
He said, Whosoever will be great among you, let him be your min- 
ister ; and whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your 
servant." 

" What did Lot say, Grandpa ? I think he must have felt flat when 
Abram talked to him that way." 

" He does not seem to have felt flat, Charley. He looked down 
into the beautiful Jordan valley ; he saw how green it was and how 
well watered, and said he, I'll take this for my share. He was quick 
to fall in with Abram's offer. That he owed anything to his uncle 
does not seem to have occurred to him. Abram must have felt that 
Lot was selfish and mean, but he nobly granted Lot his choice, and 
that day the two rich chieftains separated from each other." 

" Good riddance to him," exclaimed Mary. 

"But he was not rid of him, my child," said Grandpa. "Abram 
had a great deal more trouble with Lot, of which I will tell you. 
Lot was not lono- in oratherinor all his live stock and other treasures 
together, and soon was on his journey down the hillside to the plain 
below. Over the southern end of this plain little cities were scat- 
tered ; and though he left his flocks and herds on the plain of Jeri- 
cho, he himself moved on toward Sodom, the very worst of those 
cities, and there he pitched his tent. The men of Sodom are said to 
have been wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly. That 
is the Bible statement about them, and yet among those vile persons 
Lot went to live with his family." 

" Why did he do such a foolish thing ?" inquired Carrie. "I should 



TRUE NOBILITY. 99 



think he would want to keep as far as possible from such persons. He 
had plenty of room in the fields, hadn't he, without going to that 
city?" 

"Why he settled there we can readily judge," was Grandpa's an- 
swer. " Lot went into the valley to make money. It was a warm, 
unhealthy place, but it promised large profits. Sodom was the chief 
city of the vicinity, and for this reason was an attractive place for 
him, and his family who had seen but little of city life. Lot was not 
quite willing to go at once into the city to live, but he set up his tent 
near it. By one writer of the Bible he is called a righteous man. 
He did not plunge headlong into so wicked a place as Sodom, but 
pitched his tent outside the city, and yet near by. The next news 
we have of him, however, is that he had really gone into the city to 
live. He had taken a house there, and was settled among its vile 
inhabitants." 

"That's the way people do," said Carrie. "They don't mean any 
great harm, but once started, on they go, and do far worse at the end 
than they ever meant to." 

"Yes," said Grandoa, " entering into sin is like entering- into a net. 
The danger seems small at first, but once in, every moment makes 
matters worse and fastens the captive tighter — so Lot became entan- 
gled, and directly we find him sitting at the gate of Sodom. The 
gates of a city were cool, sheltered places, where idlers loved to sit 
and talk and see the passers-by. Lot had become so far like the 
men of Sodom that he sat and chatted with them in these public 
places. He was quite at home among them. He had become more 
and more entangled in their net. Then his daughters married and 
settled in Sodom ; but so far did Lot fall from the right and the 
good way, that when he tried to warn them of danger because of 
their sins he seemed to them as one that mocked. His influence 
with his own children was gone, and the people of the city spoke 
contemptuously of him. Everybody despised him." 

" He did indeed get into the net, sure enough," said Mary, as she 



100 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



heard this sketch of Lot's history. " How could he enjoy such a life 
after being so long with Abram ?" 

" He did not enjoy it. See what is said of him in 1 1 Peter ii, 8," 
said Grandpa. 

Carrie took the Bible this time and read as follows : " For that 
rio-hteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed 
his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds." 

" He was a big goose to stay in such a place and be vexed every- 
day. I'd have moved," said Charley. 

" Why he did not move we can only imagine," answered Grandpa. 
" He was probably making money and living in luxury — so he stayed, 
right or wrong, happy or unhappy. Better far is it not to enter the 
net at all, not to go near that which is wrong. Keep away off 
from it, as a careful driver keeps from the edge of a precipice. Do 
not enter the outer circles of a whirlpool, then the centre of it will 
never swallow you." 

" May I add a quotation from Solomon ?" said Mrs. Reed. " My 
son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not." 

"What about my daughter, if sinners entice thee ?" asked Charley, 
laughing. 

"Solomon knew the daughters would be all right," answered 
Mary, as the party broke up in a merry mood. 



HOME FROM THE FIGHT. 101 

HOME FROM THE FIGHT; 

Or, ROYAL HONORS FOR VICTORS. 



■ ^TT'^ELL us about Abram and Lot, Grandpa. I want to know 
more of what happened to them," said Carrie on the next, 
-*- assembling of the family in the sitting-room. 

" How do you suppose," asked Grandpa in reply, " that Abram 
treated Lot after they separated ?" 

" I know how I would have treated him," said Mary. " I would 
have let him totally alone: I would never have spoken to him again ; 
I would never have cared to see him. He was too mean for any 
thing." 

" So would I — only worse," exclaimed Charley. 

<: Well, we will see what Abram did," replied Grandpa. " Sodom 
and the cities about it were subject to a great King known as the 
King of Elam. But they rebelled against him, and would not pay 
him any more money for taxes. So this King and three others came 
one day and attacked the cities of the plain. They made short work 
of the soldiers who came out to fight them. Then they stole all the 
valuables they could find and carried off Lot and many other people 
as prisoners." 

" Served Lot right," exclaimed Charley ; " he had no business to 
live there." 

"By and by Abram heard what had happened to Lot. What do 
you suppose he then did ? He did not say, Served him right, nor, It's 1 
none of my business. Oh ! no ; he gathered together his own men who 
could serve as soldiers and other men who were his friends, three 
hundred and eighteen in all, and away he went in pursuit of the vie- 
7 



102 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



torious King of Elam. After a chase of about a hundred miles, he 
overtook and beat him completely and took back the prisoners and 
all the stolen goods. So Abram saved Lot and recovered all the 
treasures of those cities of the plain." 




" Ani Melchizedek King of Salem brought forth bread and -wine : and he was the priest of the most 
> high God." — Genesis xiv, 18. 

"He was just grand!" exclaimed Mary, who was an ardent hero- 
worshiper. 

" I wish I had seen that fight," said Charley. " It would have been 
splendid fun to see those fellows chased over the hills, dropping all 
the nice things as they ran." 



HOME FROM THE FIGHT. 103 

"When the fight was over and Abram's men had rested, he began 
his march home, and everybody on the way was anxious to do him 
honor. The King of Sodom, who had escaped capture at the time 
of the battle, went out a long way to meet Abram and his men ; and 
well he might. They had done a great thing for him. Another 
great King named Melchizedek came out to meet them also. He 
was King of Salem. He was so noble and good and so honorable a 
priest of God that the Lord Jesus Himself is called, a priest after the 
order of Melchizedek. This King- brought out food and drink for the 
soldiers, and in the name of God pronounced blessings on Abram. 
So as they came home from the fight royal honors were bestowed 
upon them everywhere, and it must have been a happy day for them 
all. Melchizedek's men brought jars of \yine and baskets of bread, and 
Abram's men brought the treasures they had recaptured, a tenth of 
which he gave to Melchizedek to be used in the service of God." 

"What was Lot doing all this time?" asked Carrie. 

"Standing around, I suppose," said Grandpa. "He probably 
picked up the sword of some dead man, so that he too might look 
like a soldier now that danger was over. But he must have been 
very glad to be free again, and must have realized how good and 
grand his dear old uncle was. The King of Sodom was so grateful 
that he urged Abram to keep all the recaptured treasures for himself. 
But Abram. was too independent for that; he would not take a thread 
or a shoestring. He did his part from a generous and noble heart, 
and he was generous and noble to the end." 

"That's so," shouted Charley. "They ought to have made him 
President, so they ought." 

Laughing heartily at Charley's republican honors for the old patri- 
arch, the little company separated, each thinking of Mrs. Reed's 
good-night text, which she read from Matthew v, 44, 45 : " Do good 
to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you 
and persecute you, that ye may be the children of your Father which 
is in heaven." 



104 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



LESSONS FROM THE STARS; 

Or, A GRAND FUTURE FORETOLD, 



LET us go out to the porch," said Grandpa, as the family rose 
from the supper table. " It is a clear night and we will 
enjoy looking at the stars." 

This request seemed a little odd ; but nobody questioned it, and 
in a moment all were looking heavenward upon stars which seemed 
especially bright in the dark-blue heavens. 

" Let us count them," said Grandpa, after a moment's silent 
looking. 

'• Count them !" said Mary. "That's more than any of us can do." 

With this all agreed ; so Grandpa proposed that, as they could 
not count the stars, they should go again to the sitting-room. Won- 
dering at his unusual conduct, they re-entered the house, and when 
all were seated, Grandpa began : " One night Abram and the Lord 
had been talking together very lovingly, and Abram opened his heart 
on a matter that puzzled him. It had been promised that he should 
have many descendants, who should become a great people. But 
the fact was that Abram had no child at all. How that promise was 
to be fulfilled Abram did not see ; so he made free to ask the Lord 
about it. Then the Lord led Abram out of the house. It was a clear, 
bright night, and God said, Look, now, toward heaven and count the 
stars. Could Abram do any better at this than we did a few minutes 
ago ? The skies of Palestine are very clear and more stars are 
visible there than here. We could not fairly begin to count the 
stars we saw. Could Abram have done any better?" 

" Why, no," said all at once. 



LESSONS FROM THE STARS. 



105 



"Just so ; and when Abram gave up his effort to count, then God 
said, So shall thy seed be." 

" Wasn't that a beautiful way for God to teach Abram ?" said Mary. 

"Yes; and Abram believed it just as God said it. This pleased 
God all the more, and He went on to assure Abram that he should 




" And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look new toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be 
able to number them. And he said unto him, So shall thy seed be." — Genesis xv, 5. 

possess all that land. He also foretold many important things about 
Abram's descendants, and finally told Abram that he should end his 
days in peace and be buried at a good old age." 

" That was lovely, wasn't it ?" said Carrie, who had made Abram's. 



10G GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

affairs her special delight. " But, Grandpa, what great nation is it 
that descended from Abram ?" 

"The Jews — or Israelites, as they prefer to be called; a people 
that has held together from Abram's time till now, though it has 
suffered more persecution and harsh treatment than any other nation 1 
of the world." 

"Why, I don't think the Jews are so many that they can't be num- 
bered," said Mary. " My geography gives their number as six hun- 
dred thousand, while some nations have eight or ten times as many." 

"True; but the Jews have been a people continuously for nearly 
four thousand years. Who can tell how many of them have lived in 
all that time ? And remember one other thing : Abram's seed, or 
descendants, are not those who bear the name of Israel only. Real 
servants of God — those who love Him from the heart — are the true 
Israelites, the true children of Abram ; for see what Paul says in 
Galatians iii, 29." 
. Carrie found the verse and read as follows : " And if ye be Christ's, 
then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." 

"Oh! I understand," exclaimed Mary. "Abram was so very 
good that all good people are called his children." 

"Yes," added Grandpa; "and when we feel discouraged at the 
great number of evil people in the world, we need only to look to 
the stars, as Abram did. We may be sure that those who love and 
serve God can no more be counted than can the stars." 

"That is a grand encouragement," said Mrs. Reed. "It reminds 
me of those splendid words of the hymn : 

" ' Ten thousand times ten thousand, 
In sparkling raiment bright — - 
The armies of the ransomed, 

Throng up the steeps of light.' " 

"And that," said Grandpa, "is but the echo of those Bible de- 
scriptions of the occupants of heaven as an innumerable company, a 
multitude which no man could number in that throng." 



FAMILY TROUBLES. 107 



FAMILY TROUBLES; 

Or, THE SERPENT IN THE HOME. 



" "T "T THAT would you think if I should tell you a story that 

\/\/ would make you feel displeased with Abram ?" asked 

* Grandpa Goodwin, as the children gathered about him. 

" I should be very sorry," said Mary, " for I think Abram was just 
splendid." 

" So should I be sorry," chimed in Carrie, " for he is so nice." 

"Tell us the story, Grandpa," urged Charley; "I guess we can 
stand it." 

" Well," began Grandpa, " I suppose we may talk over this stoty, 
since God for some grood reason has allowed it to 2^0 into the Bible. 
Abram's wife had a servant-maid named Ha^ar. She was dutiful 
and well-behaved, and Sarai at last urged Abram to marry this maid 
and have two wives. It was an odd thing for her to urge, but she 
did it, and Abram yielded and married Hagar. It was quite common 
in those days for men to have several wives, though the Bible never 
approves such conduct. This second marriage soon brought trouble" 
into Abram's family. It let Satan, the old serpent, right into his 
home." 

" I should think it would," said Mary; "but Sarai was very foolish 
to ask Abram to do such a thine." 

" And he very foolish to do it," continued Grandpa. " for no sooner 
was Hagar recognized as his wife than her head was turned by her 
new honors, and she despised the very woman whose influence had 
made her what she was. Then Sarai became jealous and ran to 
Abram with sore complaints against Hagar. Abram hardly did 



103 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 



right by Hagar either, for he said to Sarai, Do to her as it pleaseth 
thee. Now Sarai was pleased to abuse Hagar, and abuse her she 
did, until in sheer desperation Hagar ran off into the woods away 
"from Abram and his people." 

" That was a shame !" exclaimed Mary, indignantly ; " but I blame 
Sarai most. She was real ugly, and had no business to treat Hagar 
so." 

" What happened to Hagar out in the woods ?" asked Charley. 
" Did Indians o-et after her?" 

" No, Charley. There were no Indians there ; but an angel of the 
Lord got after her, and that was a great deal better." 

" What did he say ?" asked the boy, who anticipated some great 
adventure of tliis lone woman in the woods. 

" The angel found her sitting by a well of water, where she had 
stopped for rest and drink. On his asking where she was going, 
she told him ail about her troubles. Then he told her to go back, 
be patient, and all would come out well, because the Lord had heard 
her cry and would care for her. Then Hagar said, Thou God seest 
me ; and trusting this fact and saying these words over and over in 
her heart, she went back to her home, and for several years after 
this we hear of no more trouble." 

" That was real kind of the angel," said Carrie ; " but then angels 
are always kind, aren't they, Grandpa ?" 

"Yes, darling; it is their business to minister to the children of 
God ?". 

"What happened after that?" inquired Charley, feeling that the 
story had not yet topped out just as he had anticipated. 

" Years ran on, and a son of Hagar's had become a large, strong 
lad. His name was Ishmael. Sarai, too, had a son, named Isaac. 
One day Sarai gave a great party in honor of her boy, and in the 
midst of the enjoyment what did she see but Ishmael making faces at 
Isaac and mocking him. She was very angry at this, and demanded 
that Ishmael be sent away from the house at once, and his mother 



FAMILY TROUBLES. 



109 



with him. That boy and her boy should not live together. One or 
the other must go. That was an awful trial for dear, kind Abram. 
What could he do ?" 

"Let Sarai clear out herself and take Ike along," answered Char- 
ley, with promptness and decision. 




" And she departed, and -wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba." — Genesis xxi, 14. 

"I'm not so sure about that," said Mary ; "but Hagar was not to 
blame. Boys will be boys; and I suppose Ishmael was full of fun 
and didn't mean any harm. He wouldn't have hurt little Isaac, I'm 
sure. Sarai needn't have become so cross about it." 



110 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" I don't like her, any way," said Carrie. " She was an old mischief- 
maker — that's what she was." 

" I don't suppose Abram was very clear as to what was best in the 
case," continued Grandpa ; " but he went to God with his trouble, 
and God told him to do what Sarai asked and He would make it all 
right for Hagar. So, early the next morning, Abram sent Hagar 
off, giving her food and water, and Sarai, no doubt, rejoiced to be rid 
of her and her saucy boy. It was a terrible trouble in a family, and 
none but God could in any way lighten it." 

" It must have been all right, for God approved it. But it don't 
seem so; does it, Grandpa?" 

''No, Mary; it does not seem right. It was grievous to Abram, 
and I am sure it was terrible to Ha^ar and Ishmael. But God 
undertook to bring good out of it, though it seemed so full of evil." 

" What did He do ? I'm sure I don't see what could be done," 
added Carrie. 

" Hagar and the boy started and journeyed on in the wilderness 
until their provisions were gone and they were thoroughly tired. 
So faint did Ishmael become that Hagar laid him in a shady place 
under the bushes, supposing he was about to die. She could not 
bear to sit there and see his agony ; so she went off a little way and 
wept aloud, while the boy, too, sobbed and moaned in his sufferings. 
Then she heard a kind voice asking, What aileth thee, Hagar? what 
aileth thee, Hagar? It was God's voice, and He assured her that 
the lad should be saved and should become the head of a oreat 
nation. Looking up, as she heard this good news, she saw a well 
near by. It took her but a moment to fill her pitcher, give the sick 
boy a drink, and bathe his hot head. Soon he was much better, and 
he lived, grew, became a famous hunter, and at last married a woman 
of Egypt, which was his mother's native land." 

"And is that all we know about him?" asked Charley. 

"We know." answered Grandpa, "that many years after, when his 
father died, Ishmael and Isaac met in sorrow and buried him. We 



FAMILY TROUBLES. \\\ 



know, also, that Ishmael became very great and that his descendants, 
the Ishmaelites, were a brave and strong people, so that the outcast 
boy had no reason to grieve in the end. The Arabs, probably, are 
descended from him, and through him they claim Abram as their 
father. They believe that Ishmael was offered in sacrifice by his 
father, on a mountain near their sacred city, Mecca. When Mo- 
hammedan pilgrims go to that city they visit this mount in honor of 
Ishmael. If they desire to make a perfect pilgrimage, they also 
listen to a sermon at this place and offer a sacrifice of their own. 
Ishmael's burial-place is pointed out near Mecca, and the claim is 
made that Abraham once visited him in this city and helped him 
rebuild its temple, which had been destroyed by a flood. Ishmael 
lived to be one hundred and thirty-seven years old and to become 
very famous." 

" This is far better than I expected," said Mary ; " but God, not 
Sarai or Abram, made it come out so well." 

" God's hands are good hands in which to leave our affairs," said 
Mrs. Reed. " As the Psalmist says, Commit thy way unto the Lord, 
trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass." 

" That's what I'll do," added Charley. " He did so well for Ish- 
mael I'll let Him try me." 

"If you really do, Charley," said his mother, "I'm sure He'll make 
a good job of it ; so I hope you'll let Him try." 

"About one hundred and twenty years ago," added Grandpa, 
""Michael Bruce, a Scottish poet, died, being only twenty-one vears 
of age. Among many beautiful verses he left are these : 

" How happy is the child who hears 
Instruction's warning voice, 
And who celestial wisdom makes 
His early, only choice. 

" For she has treasures greater far 
Than east or west unfold, 
And her rewards more precious are 
Than all their stores of gold." 



112 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

THREE WONDERFUL GUESTS; 

Or, ENTERTAINING ANGELS UNAWARES. 



" •^""'VX.RRIE, turn to Hebrews xiii and read the first two verses," 
I said Grandpa. 

^— "^ Carrie turned as told and read these words: "Let 
brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers : foi 
thereby some have entertained angels unawares." 

" What is unawares?" asked Charley. 

"Unawares," repeated Mar)'; "why, unawares means without 
thinking. They entertained angels without supposing them to be 
angels." 

" Can either of you tell of a person who once entertained stran- 
gers without suspecting them to be angels, but who afterward found 
them to be really such?" asked Grandpa. 

Nobody answered ; so Grandpa went on : " One very warm day 
Abram — whose name God had lately changed to Abraham — was 
sitting at his tent-door, resting and cooling- himself, when suddenly 
three men appeared. He hastened forward to. meet them and 
bowed most politely. They were entire strangers to him, but he 
offered to entertain them, and they consented to stop. So Abraham 
had water brought for them to wash, and while they rested under a 
tree near by, he had meat and cakes cooked ; then the table was set 
in a shady place, and while the strangers ate, Abraham stood by to 
see that all their wants were supplied." 

"Who were these men?" asked Carrie, whose curiosity was rising 
with the story. 

" Abraham did not know, nor did he ask. No doubt he wondered, 



THREE WONDERFUL GUESTS. 



113 



but he was too gentlemanly to question them. Maybe he suspected 
whom they were, but he kept still and served them as best he knew 
how. The fact is that one of them was the Lord Himself, who after- 
ward was known as Jesus ; the others were angels who went with 




" He took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and s t it before them ; and he stood by 
the?u under the tree, and they did eat." — Genesis xviii, 8. 

Him to do His bidding. Abraham did not know these facts, how- 
ever. He entertained the angels unawares." 

"It was Abraham, then, that Carrie read about!" exclaimed Mary. 
"1 see now. I can answer that question the next time you ask it, 
I'm sure. But why did God change his name from Abram to Abra- 



114 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

ham. I don't see much difference between them. I prefer Abram; 
it's shorter, and don't seem so old-fashioned." 

" There is a difference, though ; and God made the change to 
honor this loved servant of His. Abram means a hk r h or noble 
father; but such a father might have no more than one son. Abra- 
ham, however, means the father of a great multitude. God made 
this change because, though Abraham had no child, yet he was to 
have many descendants and be widely honored. Sarai's name, too, 
had been changed to Sarah. Sarai probably meant co7itcntious or 
quarrelsome — a name that seems well applied in her earlier life. 
Sarah means princess, and well describes the honor into which she 
was brought at the end as the mother of many nations." 

"What did the angels do at Abraham's?" asked Charley, seeming 
not to enjoy the digression about the change of names. 

" After some cheery words to Abraham and Sarah, they started on 
their way, Abraham going with them to see them safely started. 
They took the road toward Sodom, and as they went their conversa- 
tion made Abraham sure they were not mere men, but real messen- 
gers of God. They were going to Sodom and Gomorrah to see 
whether there was anything good in those cities. If not, they meant 
to destroy them. This they told to Abraham, knowing him to be a 
true friend of God's. When they came to the brow of the hill the 
angels passed on, but the Lord remained with Abraham. Then 
Abraham began to plead that Sodom might be spared. He thought 
of Lot and his family and was anxious to save them. The Lord 
promised to spare Sodom if fifty righteous persons should be found 
there; then, on Abraham's further pleading, He agreed to spare the 
city if forty-five righteous persons should be found there ; then if 
forty; then if thirty ; then if twenty ; then if ten. Having made this 
promise, the Lord left and Abraham went back to his tent." 

" How large were those cities, Grandpa ? — as large as New York 
or Chicago ?" 

" By no means, Mary. Sodom was the chief of them and was the 



THREE WONDERFUL GUESTS. 115 

seat of the local government, but at most it had only a few thousand 
inhabitants. Its residents were chiefly shepherds or small farmers, 
having plenty of idle time on their hands and having no great ambi- 
tions to excel in any way. Satan finds some mischief still for idle 
hands to do, you know, and these idlers became very low and vile." 
" It was a mean city to live in ; and a mean set of people," said 
Charley, very positively. " I'll bet there were a sneaking set of boys 
in that old town. I'm glad it wasn't my home." 

" How did Abraham feel, I wonder, after being in such company 
and having such talk ?" was Carrie's half-questioning meditation, as 
Grandpa paused. 

"I am sure he felt honored by having entertained such guests and 
having had an interview with the Lord Himself. But he felt awfully 
concerned for Lot. It may be Abraham blamed himself more or less 
for having brought Lot from his early home in Chaldea into this land ; 
but, whether he did or not, Lot was in terrible clanger. Abraham 
had done all he could to save him; but would he be saved? This 
was uncertain. The chances were sadly against him. It looked as 
though all was a;one." 

"Well, was he saved?" exclaimed the children. 

" Of that we shall talk to-morrow evening. Meanwhile you will 
do well to remember what we read at the beginning this evening 
about entertaining strangers." 

" And let me remind the children also," added Mrs. Reed, " that 
on one occasion two hospitable men entertained a stranger who 
proved to be even greater than angels." 

"Where was that, mamma, and whom did they entertain?" asked 
Carrie. 

" Read the last chapter of Luke, and see for yourself." 

"Oh! I know," exclaimed Mary. "It was the disciples at Em* 
maus who entertained the Lord." 

"Yes, darling, you are right." 



116 GRANDPA GOODWJN'SSTORILS. 

EVERYTHING DESTROYED; 

Or, FLEEING FROM THE BURNING CITY. 



" '^ T" THAT became of Lot?" asked Charley, before the family 
\ /\ / h a d ti me to be fairly seated. " I haven't thought of any- 
* * thing else to-day but of those angels going to Sodom, 
and I've been wondering whether Lot trot off." 

"When the two angels reached the gate of Sodom," began Grandpa, 
:< the first man to meet them was Lot. He was sitting at the eate, 
and as he saw them come near, he went forward and saluted them 
in friendly style and asked them to come and lodge with him. After 
a little urging they consented, and Lot took them home to supper, 
little thinking that he was entertaining angels." 

"I wish some of them would come to our house," added Charley. 
J * I'd give them my bed to sleep in, I would." 

"Lot felt that way too, Charley," resumed Grandpa; "but before 
they had time to go to bed a mob of low, vile fellows, whose conduct 
had given Sodom so bad a name, gathered about Lot's door and 
wanted to see his guests, really meaning to do them harm. Lot 
went out to talk to the men and quiet them, but the miserable fel- 
lows turned on him, mocking him and attempting to beat him. Then 
the angels interfered. Opening the door they jerked Lot away from 
the mob and caused a sudden blindness to fall upon the men, who 
groped around for the door, howling at Lot and his guests and strug- 
gling with each other until completely wearied out, when they gave 
up their effort and scattered to their homes." 

" I guess Lot thought he had angels about him when they pulled 
him in. It was lucky for him they were there," said Mary. 



EVERYTHING DESTROYED. 



117 



"They'd have killed Lot but for the angels," added Carrie. 

" After this affair die angels did not debate long as to what was to 
be done with Sodom. They sent Lot off to the houses of his married 
daughters to warn them to flee before the city should be destroyed. 




" Escape for thy life ; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain ; escape to the mountain, 
lest thou be consumed."' — Genesis, xix, 17. 

But alas ! Lot had not talked that way before, nor lived that way. ' 
He had said nothing about danger because of sin. He had acted a.^i 
if Sodom was the best place he knew, and he had stayed there to 
make money. To his sons-in-law he seemed as one that mocked 
when he suddenly became concerned for their safety; they would not 



113 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STOR U.S. 



* 



go, nor would their wives. So Lot went back home alone, while the 
young folks probably laughed at their father's excitement and went 
off to their beds. As day began to dawn the angels urged Lot with 
his wife and two unmarried daughters to rise and fly lest they should 
be consumed ; but they were not in a hurry. No alarm of fire had 
been sounded; they saw.no token of danger — so they lingered until 
the angels seized them by their hands and hurried them away outside 
the city's gate, telling them to hasten and escape for their lives ; not 
to look back nor to stop in all the plain, but to flee to the mountains, 
lest they should be consumed with the city." 

"I suppose they hurried fast enough then. I'm sure I would have- 
done so had I been there." 

"It would seem so indeed, Mary but it was not so. Lot did not 
want to go to the mountains, so he begged permission to go to Zoar, 
another little city. For Lot's sake Zoar was spared, and the angels 
hurried him toward it. Lot's wife did not want to go at all. She 
had been told not even to look back, but back she did look, and in- 
stantly she was changed into a pillar of salt. Just how this was done 
we do not know, but she disobeyed, and for that she was destroyed. 
Lot and his daughters then hurried on, frightened, out of breath, and 
stripped of all their goods except what they carried in their hands. 
No sooner had they reached Zoar than fire and brimstone rained 
down upon Sodom and Gomorrah, burning up everything, and totally 
destroying the cities, the surrounding country, the- cattle, and all the 
people." 

" Did Abraham know the city was burned up?" asked Carrie, with 
evident concern. 

'' Doubtless he did," responded Grandpa. " I do not suppose he 
slept much that night after the Lord left him. At any rate, Genesis xix, 
27, says that he went up early in the morning to the place where he 
stood before the Lord, and he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, 
and lo ! the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace. 
He then found out for a certainty that ten righteous persons had nol 



EVERY! BING DESTROYED. 119 

been discovered in Sodom, but whether Lot had been destroyed he 
did not know." 

" What became of Lot and his daughters ?" asked Mary. 

" His was a sad end. He lost all his property in the fire; his mar- 
ried daughters and their husbands were burned up ; his wife was 
turned into a pillar of salt on their way to Zoar ; and he, with his 
two daughters, reached there weary, bereaved, destitute, and terror- 
stricken. But they were not contented. For some reason he feared 
to dwell in the city. Perhaps he feared another fiery shower ; per- 
haps the people were unfriendly and abusive. But he was afraid to 
stay — so he and his daughters went off to the mountains, as they 
were ordered to do at the first, and made their home in a cave." 

"Oh! my," exclaimed Carrie; "just to think of it! and he was 
once so rich ! How awfully his daughters must have felt to become 
so poor and live in a cave !" 

" Why didn't he go back to Abraham ?" asked Charley. " Rich 
uncles are always nice to go to." 

" He would have been ashamed to do that," said Mary. 

" I judge he was," replied Grandpa, " for we have no account that 
he ever did go back, but he continued to live in the cave. His 
daughters, dissatisfied with everything about them, acted very badly 
for a time, and then they drop out of the Bible narrative and we hear 
no more about them." 

" Don't you know what became of Lot ?" 

" No, Charley ; his is one of those cases which end in darkness. 
After his changeful life it is to be hoped he found the eternal rest, 
but no man knows how it fared with him." 

"That is a sad ending to the story," said Mary, very seriously; 
Mrs. Reed adding the words from Paul, " The love of money is the 
root of all evil." 



120 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 



A TIMELY RESCUE; 

Ok, THE CHILD OF PROMISE SAVED. 



I 



HAVE been thinking so much about Lot and the trouble he 
must have been to his good uncle," began Mary, as the 
family gathered once more for their after-tea chat. "I think 
Abraham must have become sorry that ever he saw Lot." 

" Rather, that ever he brought Lot into Canaan," interrupted 
Grandpa, "for there is where the trouble began. God told Abra- 
ham to leave his father's house and his kindred ; but Abraham took 
some of his kindred along — this nephew, Lot, among them — and he 
became a constant trouble. I suppose Abraham loved Lot and was 
unwilling to leave him behind. But Abraham outgrew that love of 
men in preference to God ; he came at last to where he would obey 
God if he had to kill his own son in doincr so." 

" Oh ! yes," exclaimed Carrie. " He came near killing Isaac, didn't 
he, Grandpa? But it was queer of the Lord to tell Abraham to do 
such a thing, wasn't it?" 

"Not so queer, possibly, as my little girl supposes. You see that 
Abraham, because of love to his father and nephew, had not done 
just as God told him. He loved them more than he loved God. 
But by the trouble they caused him he learned that it is better to 
obey God at any cost than to please one's self. That Abraham had 
really learned this hard lesson, and that he would obey God in any- 
thing, God now meant to prove." 

"Why should God do that?" asked Mary. "Did not He know 
that Abraham would obey?" 

" Yes ; but Abraham did not know it for himself until God tested 



A TIMELY RESCUE. 121 



him, and the world would never have known it without this trial. 
God meant the test to be a hard one. Read to us, Mary, from Gene- 
sis xxii, 2, and see just what God did demand ?" 

In a moment Mary had found the place and read: "And He said, 
Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get 
thee into the land of Moriah ; and offer him there for a burnt-offerino- 
upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of." 

" That was an awfully hard thing to ask," said Carrie. " But Abra- 
ham knew God didn't mean for him to do it; didn't he, Grandpa?" 

" Certainly not. Abraham was in solemn earnest. He meant to 
do all God commanded this time. That he expected to kill Isaac 
is clear from Hebrews xi, 19, which tells us he did it, accounting that 
God was able to raise him up, even from the dead. So he expected 
Isaac to go among the dead — to die, in other words — and he believed 
that God would bring him back to life at some time and in some way, 
so that God's promises concerning Isaac might be fulfilled. God put 
His command in a very hard form : Take thy son, thine only son, Isaac, 
whom thou lovest, and offer him for a burnt-offering. God meant to 
make Abraham see all the terribly hard things in this act of obedience; 
and he was to obey at once, for God said, Take now thy son and offer 
him. So Abraham was to kill his dear boy, drain the blood from his 
body, and then burn it ; for in this way the burnt-offering was made." 

"That was a dreadful thing to ask of a father," said Carrie, with a 
si udder. 

•' I wouldn't have done it if it had been me." 

"That's where you and Abraham differ, then, Charley," said 
Grandpa, with a smile ; " for he rose early the next morning and 
started. There was no disobedience this time ; he now meant to do 
just what God had ordered. It was a two days' journey ; but they 
went, with wood split and knife sharpened, until they came to the 
appointed spot. What they talked about on the way is not told, 
except that Isaac said, Behold the fire and the wood : but where is 
the lamb for the burnt-offering? This question shows that the boy 



122 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



did not know his father's errand. His inquiry must have cut Abra- 
ham to the heart. He could not control himself so as to tell all, but 
he answered, My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt- 
offering. So they came to the place of sacrifice, where they rolled 




"And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the an~el of the 
Lord called unto him out of hcavin, and said, Abraham, Abraham." — Genesis xxii, 10, II. 



together some great stones for an altar, on which they arranged the 
wood so that it would burn freely. Then came the fearful moment. 
It must be done. God had said it. Abraham will obey. He tied 
Isaac's hands, laid him on the altar, took the knife, stretched forth 
his own hand to strike the blow and kill the boy ; but, as he paused 



A TIMELY RESCUE. 123 



a moment, probably in prayer,, a voice rang out, loud and clear: 
Abraham ! Abraham ! Here am I, said he ; here in the place to 
which God sent me ; here, doing the work God ordered ; here, ready 
to know and to do His will, though my heart aches and breaks." 

"Well, I never understood how good and grand Abraham was in 
that. I couldn't help thinking he was very cruel ; but now he seems 
to be just right," said Mary. 

"So God thought; for read what the an^el wno l iac [ called him 
says in verse 12." 

Mary read : " And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither 
do thou anything unto him : for now I know that thou fearest God, 
seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from me." 

. " How glad Abraham must have felt at that ! I guess he said, 
Thank you, in real earnest," said Carrie. 

" I guess it didn't take him long to untie Ike, upset the old altar, 
and start back home," added Charley, with a glow of enthusiasm. 

" So far as upsetting the altar is concerned, that they did not do. 
Abraham at that moment saw a ram caught in the bushes by his 
horns ; so he took the ram and offered him instead of Isaac for a 
burnt-offering unto the Lord. Then God spoke again, repeating the 
old promises and giving Abraham some new ones, also, because he 
had obeyed so nobly." 

" He deserved it, too. Nobody could have had a harder trial, and 
nobody could have met it more splendidly." 

"You are right, Mary," added Grandpa. "After this they started 
home — a happy couple, I am sure." 

"Which of you," joined in Mrs. Reed at this point, "can tell me of 
another Father who really did offer as a sacrifice His Son, His only 
Son, and One whom He dearly loved?" 

None of the children answering, she turned over the leaves of the 
Bible to John iii, 1 6, and read : " For God so loved the world that 
He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him 
should not perish, but have everlasting life." 



124 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

A QUEER COURTSHIP; 

Or, WHY SUPPER WAS DELAYED. 



"~T ^V 7~HAT a good time Isaac must have had with the boys 

\/\/ after he got home again," said Charley, when the family 

* * met once more. " If my father had most killed me and 

I had got off all right, I'd have had something to tell them, I knew." 

" I trust the boys did enjoy listening to him, and that he enjoyed 
telling them," said Grandpa, " for the story ought to have made 
better boys of them. But there was another scene in Isaac's life, 
which possibly may interest the girls more than the boys." 

" O Grandpa ! do tell us," shouted both girls at once, Mary adding 
the declaration that she was " dying to hear it." 

" It is about a queer courtship, or the way Isaac got his wife." 

" Splendid !" exclaimed Mary. " Do go on. I'm dying more than 
ever to hear about it now." 

"Well," resumed Grandpa, "Isaac's mother died and left him a 
well-grown lad, some forty years of age." 

" A venerable old bachelor, I should say," laughed Mary. 

" But .boys did not grow up so fast then," continued Grandpa. 
"Isaac was probably gaining some young lady acquaintances among 
the neighbors, who really worshiped idols and were very wicked 
people. Abraham did not like the idea of his son marrying one of 
these women, so he called his head servant and sent him to the land 
called Mesopotamia, where Abraham himself had been born, that he 
might there find a wife for Isaac." 

" Ha ! ha !" laughed Charley. " That old chap of a servant was to 
do the courting, was he ?" 



A QUEER COURTSHIP. 



125 



" So it seems, Charley, and Abraham gave him plenty of camels 
and servants, with gold, silver, precious stones, rich robes, and other 
costly and elegant things, and then made the servant take a solemn 
oath to do all he had been told, and so started him on his lone 
and very odd errand." 




"And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher. 
And she said, Drink, my lord." — Genesis xxiv, 17, 18. 



" Why was he so sure that any nice girl would come so far to 
marry a man she had never seen ?" asked Carrie, adding, seriously, 
" I wouldn't do it, I know/' 



126 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Oh ! that was the way of doing then," said Grandpa, " and they do 
pretty much that way even now in those lands." 

" Glad I don't live there!" exclaimed Mary. 

"So am I glad you don't live there," said Grandpa, "for then we 
could not have our pleasant evening talks. But the old servant 
started, and after a long, long journey of many days, he came to a 
city called Nahor, after Abraham's own brother, whose descendants 
were settled all around that place. Here he had been told to seek a 
wife for Isaac. ^ And how do you suppose he began ?" 

" Why, by asking questions about the nice young girls of the 
place, of course," said Mary. 

" No, not a question did he ask. Just outside the city was a well, 
and the women were accustomed to come there in the cool of the 
day for water. There the old servant's caravan stopped ; and having 
prayed that God would guide him, he decided that when the women 
came to the well he would ask for a drink from their pitchers. If 
any one of them gave him a drink and also offered to fill the water 
troughs so that the camels might drink, he would take that as a sure 
sipn that she was the one for Isaac. It was a strange thing for him 
to expect any young woman to offer to do, for camels drink enor- 
mously, and to draw water for a herd of them was a tremendous 

task." 

» 

" It was a pretty good test though, for anybody obliging enough 
to do that would be good and kind, I'm sure," said Mary. 

" Yes, that is so. The old servant had not long to wait, for 
directly some of the women came, and he asked for a drink. Then 
one bright, pretty girl at once lowered her pitcher from her shoulder 
on to her hand that he might drink from it, and she also offered to 
draw water for the camels. So surprised was the good old man 
that he let her go on drawing water until the camels were satisfied. 
Then he gave her a splendid gold ear-ring and two beautiful 
bracelets, and asked her whose daughter she was, and whether her 
father could keep him for the night. She told who she was — a grand- 



A QUEER COURTSHIP. 



127 



daughter of Abraham's brother — and then she ran home to tell of the 
strangers who were coming-. Possibly the rich gifts she had. received 
helped the welcome, but sure it is that her brother Laban ran out to 
the well and urged the strangers to come right along, as everything 
was ready for them and their beasts. The camels were quickly 




'■ What man is this that walkelh in the field to meet its f" — Genesis xxiv, 64. 



unladen and fed, and supper was soon ready for the old servant. 
1 But,' said he, 'I will not eat until I have told mine errand.' So he. 
kept supper waiting while he told who he was, why he came, and what 
had happened at the well. When he was through they all agreed that 



128 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

the matter was from the* Lord. Then the old servant handed out a 
splendid lot of presents to each of the family, after which they took 
supper and spent a happy evening together." 

" And was she really engaged to Isaac so quick as that, and she 
had never seen him ?" asked Mary, with astonishment. 

" Even so. Rebekah (for that was her naine) was willing, and 
who was more concerned than she ? Early next morning the old 
servant wanted to be right off to Isaac. The family very naturally 
wanted him to stay a few days, but he was urgent and Rebekah 
agreed, so off they started for Isaac's home in Canaan. Her old 
nurse, Deborah, went with her, as did her servant maids, and so, 
mounted on camels and escorted by Abraham's men, the bridal party 
began its march to the far-off, and to them, unknown land." 

" That was a queer performance," said Carrie. " And what was 
Isaac doing all this time ?" 

"He was anxious and impatient, I am sure, for he moved up 
toward the north a little to meet the caravan as it should be return- 
ing. One evening, as we are told in Genesis xxiv, 6^, ' he went out 
to meditate in the field.' He went in the direction which the old 
servant would naturallv take in returning;, and as Isaac looked, 
'behold! the camels were coming.' At the same moment Rebekah 
saw him and asked who he was. Then she drew a veil over her 
face, got down off her camel, and in another moment Isaac, her 
future husband, was at her side." 

" Suppose they had not liked each other, wouldn't it have been 
awful ?" said Carrie. 

" But they did like each other. Isaac loved her, and she was a 
comfort to him, and she went to live in his mother's splendid tent, 
and Abraham was glad that Isaac had found so good a wife in so 
odd a way." 

" That is a nice story," said Carrie. " I shall certainly tell it to ali 
the girls in school to-morrow." 



ex 



■B^^^a^j^i 



goffigftf 




REBEKAH AT THE WELL. 



130 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

SHARP PRACTICE; 

Or, DIAMOND CUT DIAMOND. 



" T TOW did Isaac and his wife get along after that queer court- 

R Hj ship ?" asked Carrie, when Grandpa was seated with the 

■*-- -*- family. 

" Very well in their young days, so far as we know. He loved her 
and she was a comfort to him, which is a good record for a man and 
his wife. But things were not smooth and happy as they became 
older, I am sorry to say." 

" Why, what happened to them then ?" asked Mary. " It seemed 
to me they were just a splendid couple. They should have lived in 
comfort to the end of their days." 

"Trouble came in this way. After they had been married a good 
many years they had twin boys, whom they called Esau and Jacob. 
Even as babies these boys were very unlike each other. Esau was 
red-haired, and had plenty of it too, so that his hands and arms were 
like a hairy garment. He grew up to be a great hunter, living out- 
of-doors in a bold, roving way. Jacob was smooth- skinned and 
of quiet manners, staying about in the house and enjoying his 
mother's society." 

" He was a mother's bov," said Charlev, with something of con- 
tempt in his manner; but catching himself in an instant, he added 
" But if his mother was like my mother, I don't blame him a bit." 

'•Jacob became his mother's favorite," continued Grandpa, "while 
Esau was a pet of his father's, chiefly because he captured so much 
fine game, of which his father was very fond. So the father favored 
and petted one son and the mother favored and petted the other. 



SHARP PRACTICE. 131 



In this way trouble is sure to come. Neither boy was slow to see 
with which parent he could best get along, so Esau ran to father 
and Jacob to mother with their complaints or requests. Soon things 
in that home became unpleasant. Trickery, deceit, falsehood, and 
favoritism grew fast. The family was divided into two parts, each 
planning against the other, each using sharp practice to outwit the 
other. It was diamond cut diamond, as the common phrase puts it; 
trust and comfort departed." 

" I'm sorry to know that," sighed Carrie. " I thought Rebekah was 
so good. I didn't think she could do an ugly thing." 

" But she did, Carrie. Like ourselves, she was only human, and 
liable to do wrong." 

" What wrong did she do, Grandpa ? I want to know all about it, 
and yet I don't want to know ; but tell me, what was it she did?" 

" Well, my dear," resumed Grandpa, " it was the custom in that 
land for the elder son of a family to receive twice as much of his 
father's property as any other son." 

" That's the kind of a son I am, the elder son," said Charley, be- 
tween Grandpa's sentences. 

" The father generally gave a special blessing to this son, so that 
he became rich in property and in his father's good-will also. Of 
right this honor belonged to Esau, but Jacob envied it, and he and 
his mother talked and schemed to get it. One day Jacob had a 
splendid mess of beans just smoking hot from the fire. As he was 
about to eat this savory food, in came Esau from a hunting trip, and 
he was both tired and hungry. He asked Jacob for the dish of beans 
he was about to eat, and Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. 
That was a big price for a mess of beans ; but Esau was a tired, 
hungry boy, and he thought he was about to die any way for the want 
of food, so he said to himself, What profit shall this birthright do to 
me? He thought his last hour had come unless he should oret food 
at once, so he sold his birthright, and by a solemn oath turned it 
over to Jacob." 



132 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S SI OKIES. 



"The foolish fellow!" exclaimed the "iris. 

O 

"Why didn't he go into the kitchen and get something for him- 
self?" asked Charley, certain that he could have managed things far 
better than Esau did. 

"The fact is," said Grandpa, "that Esau cared very little for the 
honor and privilege that were his. He despised his birthright, as we 
are told in Genesis xxv, 34, and having eaten his fill, he rose up and 
went his way without regret for having parted with it. Whether his 
father knew that Esau had sold the birthright we do not know, but 
he loved Esau and the venis.on Esau brought him, and he decided to 
give him the blessing, right or wrong. One day he told Esau that 
the time had come that he should have it, but he demanded that Esau 
should go and kill some venison and dress it; then, after eating it, 
the blessing would in due form be given. If Esau had been true to 
his bargain made with Jacob, he would have told all about it then, 
but he said nothing and hurried off to kill the deer and feed his father. 
So he tried his sharp practice in the case." 

"Well, I don't like him for that," said Mary. "He sold out to 
Jacob and swore that he would stand by his bargain ; so he ought 
to have done it." * 

'That would have been honorable," replied Grandpa; "but Re- 
bekah was sharp too. It was diamond cut diamond. So she hur- 
riedly cooked some goat's meat, seasoned it as Isaac liked to have 
venison seasoned, then hunted up some of Esau's old clothes and 
put them on her pet boy. His hands and neck she covered with 
goatskin and so sent him to his father, who was blind, that he might 
get the blessing ahead of Esau." 

"That was mean; I don't like her either," was Mary's emphatic 
comment. 

" Mothers will do anything for boys," said Charley, looking rogu- 
ishly at his mother and sisters. 

" Mothers ought never to do a wrong thing for either boys or girls," 
replied Grandpa, " but Rebekah did it. She sent her boy to deceive 



SHARP PRACTICE. 



133 



his blind father, and ohc planned and helped the deception from first 
to last. When all was ready, Jacob went in carrying the goat's meat 
to his father, who was surprised that Esau should be back so soon. 
So he asked, Who art thou, my son ? That was a hard question for 




" It came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob . . . that Esau his brother 
came in from his hunting.'''' — Genesis xxvii, 30. 

Jacob to meet, but he met it with a lie, saying, I am Esau, thy first- 
born. The blind old man was suspicious that all was not right, and 
wanted to feel his hands. When he felt the rough goatskin and the 
clothes and smelt the odor of the garments, he was satisfied, though 

he said the voice was Jacob's. Once more he asked, Art thou my 
9 



134 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



very son Esau ? And Jacob said, I am. Then Isaac blessed him, 
kissed him, ate die food, and was content. But hardly was this done 
when in came Esau. Then there was a scene. Esau cried aloud and 
begged for a blessing, while the old father trembled all over and 
knew not what to do. At last he said, I have blessed him, and he 
shall be blessed. Then Esau begged piteously for some other bless- 
ing, and his father gave him one full of comfort, and yet Jacob was 
to & be chief. He and his mother had gained the prize. The blessing 
of the firstborn was his." 

" But, Grandpa, I don't see why the firstborn should be any better 
than any other child," said Mary. "I don't think I'm so great just 
because I was born before Carrie and Charley." 

" Good girl !" shouted Charley ; " but you're our big sister all the 

same." 

" You know, Mary, that the King, in countries so ruled, is always 
the firstborn son, or his firstborn son, and so, not by second sons, but 
by the first in each family, the titles and honors are handed down. 
It was so in Jacob's time. Then, too, he who is the head of the 
family, its prince or chieftain among the patriarchs, needed more 
property to maintain his larger establishment ; so the firstborn needed 
to be the most liberally provided for." 

"I'll bet Esau was mad at Jacob." said Charley. 

"Yes, I suppose he was," continued Grandpa. "It is said that he 
hated Jacob because of this trick, and vowed to kill him when their 
father should die. In this way a sad, sad home was made." 

"I'm real sorry," said Carrie; "but they all did wrong, didn't 

they ?" 

"Yes," interposed Mrs. Reed, "and let us learn to keep our home 
happy by always doing right." 

" We'll try," was the answer all gave with real earnestness. 



THE WONDERFUL LADDER. 335 

THE WONDERFUL LADDER; 

Or, A STAIRWAY TO THE SKIES. . 



' "T "T THAT happened to Jacob after he got that birthright?" 
\/\/ asked Charley before Grandpa had fairly settled him- 
* * self in his easy-chair. " Did Esau hurt him ? I've been 
wondering all day how their quarrel came out." 

" Xo ; Esau did not harm him," replied Grandpa. " But Jacob's 
mother was afraid harm would come to her pet boy ; so she made 
an excuse to send him away to her father's until Esau's anger should 
cool off. She told Isaac that she feared Jacob would marry a young 
woman of the land where they were dwelling, and this she thought 
would never do, so she proposed that he go off to Padan-aram and 
there get a wife. Isaac approved the plan and Jacob started. He 
had a long and lonesome journey before him. No doubt he was 
somewhat homesick, for he had never gone far from his mother be- 
fore. His father, too, was so aged and feeble that Jacob could hardly 
expect to see him again, and his mother possibly might die before 
he should get back ; then, too, Esau hated him bitterly and was ready 
to kill him at the first chance he should find." 

"I don't wonder Jacob felt badly," broke in Charley. "Seems to 
me I'd have stayed home and tried to make it up with Esau." 

'•So should I," said Carrie. "I could not have enjoyed any such 
birthright." 

" Nor was Jacob happy, my dear," resumed her kind Grandpa. 
" There had been so much trickery and deception in the whole affair 
that his conscience must have troubled him, and nobody can be happy 
with an accusing conscience. But Jacob trudged on — fearful, won- 



1 36 GRANDPA GOOD WIN ' S STORIES. 

dering, and penitent, too, I am sure — until night came, and he lay 
down to sleep with nothing but a stone for a pillow." 

"A hard pillow, I should think," said Mary. 

"Yes ; it was a hard case all through. But sweet sleep and pleas- 
ant dreams often come on hard beds ; and so it was with Jacob that 
night." 

" What did he dream ?" asked Carrie. 

" He had the nightmare awfully," said her brother. 

"No," said Grandpa, "not the nightmare, but a wonderful dream, 
a beautiful dream — a dream that Jesus Himself refers to in one of 
His talks." 

" What was the dream, Grandpa ? I am interested in dreams! 
They are so nice, I think. Do tell us !" exclaimed Carrie. 

" Mary may read about it from Genesis xxviii, 12, 13." 

In an instant Mary had the place and read: "And he dreamed, 
and behold, a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to 
heaven : and behold, the angels of God ascending and descending on 
it: and behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God 
of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac : the land whereon thou 
liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed." 

" Well, that seems very queer," said Carrie. "Jacob had acted so 
meanly about the birthright, and yet God treats him so nicely." 

" That is why I spoke so positively about Jacob as penitent. Had 
he not been so, God would not have favored him ; but for Abraham's 
sake and Isaac's sake, God was ready to bless even Jacob and to 
assure him of that blessing in this splendid dream." 

"That is just like God," said Mary. " He is so good and so for- 
oqvinor" 

" But what was meant by that ladder?" asked Charley. "I don't 
see any good it did. It was very pretty, but it was just a dream." 

"A dream, indeed, Charley," replied Grandpa; "and yet a dream 
which God sent to teach Jacob some great lessons." 

"What lessons?" asked the boy, eagerly. 



THE WONDERFUL LADDER. 



137 



" Why, think a moment, each of you, and see for yourselves what 
such a dream taught." 

" It taught that there is an open way between heaven and earth," 
said Mary. 




• And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven ; and 
behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it." — Genesis xxviii, 12. 

" And that God's angels go back and forth between God to men," 
said Carrie. 

" And that God stands at the top and watches all that goes on." 
said Charley. 

" And that the road to heaven is direct," said Mary. 



138 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" And even when you're asleep it's all the same," said Charley. 

"Well done, my little dears!" exclaimed Grandpa. "And now, 
think how grand a view this must have been for Jacob ! From the 
rocky spot where he lay asleep a pathway of silvery light led up 
through the darkness — up above the tree-tops, up above the moon 
and the stars — up to where the Lord Himself, the Light of the world, 
the Sun of righteousness, stood — Himself the source of all that splen- 
dor, the fountain of all that glory ; while between Him and the lonely- 
sleeper below, angels, who are God's ministering spirits, trooped 
back and forth. But, grand as was that display, God added to its 
glory by Himself speaking to Jacob. I am, said He, the Lord God 
of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac. Then followed a re- 
newal of the promises which had been given to those noble old 
patriarchs. The land where Jacob lay asleep was assured to him 
and his descendants as an inheritance ; an immense number of 
descendants, in whom all the world should be blessed, was promised 
to him, and God promised to go with Jacob wherever he went and 
to bring him again to Canaan. Such is the substance of what God 
said, and all question as to the favor and care of the Lord was dis- 
pelled by these words. Happy Jacob ! to whom God so lovingly 
spoke. 

" That was too lovely !" exclaimed Mary and Carrie together. 

"Jacob awoke. Possibly he was chilled with the night air and 
stiff from his hard couch ; but he remembered what had occurred, 
and his first exclamation was, Surely the Lord is in this place ! He 
had not suspected that the Lord was so near. When he lay down to 
sleep it was with misgiving and anxiety ; but now that he thought on 
his vision, a reverential fear came on him, and he said, How dread- 
ful is this place ! This is none other than the house of God ; this is 
the gate of heaven. It was a place ever to be remembered by him 
and his children, so he called it by a new name — Bethel — meaning, 
the House of God. The stone which he had used for a pillow he 
set up for a memorial pillar, a sort of monument, that it might mark 



THE WONDERFUL LADDER. 139 

this spot in all future years. Then Jacob made a solemn vow that 
this place should be kept sacred and that he himself would serve 
God faithfully; then he started on his journey, a wiser and better 
man than ever before. And now, if Mary will read what Jesus said 
to Nathaniel, we will see just what that wonderful ladder means for 
us." 

Mary turned to John i, 51, at Grandpa's suggestion, and read: 
"Verily, verily, 1 say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, 
and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of 
man." 

"Oh!" shouted Charley and Carrie together; "Jesus is the ladder 
between heaven and earth. Isn't He, Grandpa ?" 

"Yes; He is our stairway to the skies, and so He taught — No 
man cometh to the Father but by me. But the grandest comfort is 
that on every spot of earth this ladder rests. Men may start to their 
heavenly Father from their own homes, wherever those homes may 
chance to be." 

" Grandpa, isn't the hymn, Nearer, my God, to Thee, founded on 
this dream?" asked Mary. "It says: 

" Though like a wanderer, 

The sun gone down, 
Darkness comes over me, 

My rest a stone, 
Yet in my dreams I'd be 
Nearer, my God, to Thee 

Nearer to Thee. ' ' 

"Yes, Mary. These Bible narratives enter into many of our 
hymns ; I am glad to see you noticing the fact and linking story and 
hymn together." 

Carrie had turned to this hymn while this little chat was going on, 
and seeing still other references to the dream, she proposed that the 
hymn be sung. All consented readily, and with this pleasant service 
the evening was closed. 



140 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

WHICH HE LOVED BEST; 

Or, SEEKING ONE AND GETTING TWO. 



" "X TOW, Grandpa," said Mary, as the supper was finished, "let 
^J us get to work once more. I am so interested in Jacob, I 

-^- ^ want to. hear more of him. I have read about him often, 
but you make him seem more real than I ever thought him." 

"You remember," said Grandpa, as he drew his chair near the 
table, " the odd way in which Isaac got his wife. Jacob, too, had an 
odd experience in his mother's country. When he reached that land 
he came to a well, which was covered with a heavy stone. While 
talking with some shepherds about the people and the place, who 
should come near to water her flocks but his own cousin, Rachel, who 
was very beautiful. Jacob at once ran forward, drew the water for 
her sheep, and then told her who he was. They cried a little for 
joy and kissed each other ; then she ran to tell the folks at home. 
In a few moments her father, whose name was Laban, came hurry- 
ing back to welcome his nephew, whom he led off to the house. 
Jacob had a good time there for a few weeks. He did not sit around 
in idleness, but made himself so useful that his uncle proposed to keep 
him permanently and pay him good wages. Little suspecting the 
price Jacob would ask, Laban said to him, What shall thy wages be? 
And what think you Jacob answered? He did not ask money or 
land or cattle, but said he, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel." 

" Ha, ha, ha," roared Charley ; " that was funny wages. I wonder 
how Rachel liked that bargain." 

" I wonder how her sisters liked it," laughed Mary ; " especially her 
older sister, if she had one." 



WHICH HE LOVED BEST. 



141 



"She had one, Leah by name," continued Grandpa. "Laban 
agreed to Jacob's terms and Jacob went to work, and he was so 
happy that the years went by and seemed like nothing more than 
days to him. Then he asked for his pay — for Rachel as his wife — 




" And Jacob loved Rachel ; and said, 1 'will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter :'■ '— 

Genesis xxix, 18. 

when, to his great surprise* Laban insisted that he should marry 
Leah, and, if he wanted Rachel, whom he surely loved best, that he 
should work another seven years for her." 

" Wasn't that mean ?" exclaimed both the girls. 

" Rather mean, I admit," said Grandpa, " but they fixed it up by 



142 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

his marrying both the sisters at once — a custom even now common 
in that land, but rightly prohibited in every enlightened country." 

" Seeking one and getting two," said Mary. 

" Two wives at the same time," commented Charley, slowly ; and 
as a merry twinkle shone in his eye, he turned to his mother, saying, 
" Glad I wasn't Jacob's boy, with two mothers to sit down on me." 

" It would take about six mothers to keep you straight," was Mrs. 
Reed's playful answer, and then Grandpa went on with his story. 

"Jacob submitted as best he could to what he could not help, and 
worked on for another seven years; then he concluded to go back 
to Canaan. But Laban had learned his value, and to induce him to 
stay offered him a share of the cattle and sheep as his pay. This 
arrangement suited Jacob, and under it he was growing rich very 
rapidly. This aroused the envy of his brothers-in-law, and even of 
Laban himself. Jacob thereupon determined to leave Laban and to 
set out at once for his own land, his wives approving his decision. 
They gathered together all their possessions, consisting of cattle, 
camels, sheep, and goods, and with their servants and children off 
they started, some riding, some walking, others carrying the little 
ones or driving the flocks, all enjoying the journey, and altogether 
making a great company. Laban was shearing his sheep at some 
distant place when they started, and did not know of their departure 
till they had been gone three days." 

"Well, that was not right. They certainly should have bidden 
him good-bye," said Mary, warmly. 

" So Laban thought, especially when he missed some of his house- 
hold idols, for he was an idolater ; so he gathered a company of men 
and started in pursuit. But God warned him in a dream that he 
should do Jacob no harm. He hurried on, however, and overtook 
the party, but, impressed by the warning, he contented himself with 
some good, fatherly advice. He then spoke of his missing idols, and 
Jacob bade him search everywhere for them. He did search, but 
Rachel, who had taken them, deceived him so they were not found. 



WHICH HE LOVED BEST. 



143 



Then Jacob scolded and stormed at Laban for making these false 
charges, and Laban begged pardon and asked Jacob to make up." 

"And did they?" asked Charley, adding, "I wouldn't have made 
up with such an old crank as Laban." 




" Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives upon camels; and he' carried away all his cattle^ 
and all his goods which he had gotten." — Genesis xxxi, 17, 18. 

" In that Jacob showed a better spirit than Charley's," answered 
Grandpa. "Jacob did make up with him, and they set up a big stone 
as a reminder of the good understanding and good-will to which they 
there and then came. They had a religious service together and a 
great farewell feast, then they said good-bye and parted." 



144 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

A FAMOUS WRESTLING MATCH; 

Or, THE VICTORIOUS CRIPPLE. 



" T "V THAT more is there about Jacob?" asked Carrie of her 
\/\/ Grandpa, as the little group met again. " He seems to 
* me a queer man. I don't know whether to like him or 

not. 

" He was far from being a perfect man," replied Grandpa; "and 
yet God loved him and put great honor on him. . Indeed, God 
honored him with a new and better name, his old name, Jacob, 
meaning a supplanter; or one who gets advantage unfairly." 

"That was o-ood enough for him, I think," said Carrie; "for he 
did take advantage of Esau. But how did it come that he TOt a new 
name ?" 

'• Why, in this way. He was no sooner free from Laban tlian he 
began to worry about Esau, through whose country he had to pass 
on his way to Canaan. They had parted in terrible bitterness many 
years before, as you know, and Esau, who was a wild, roving, lawless 
chief, like the Arab leaders of to-day, was well able to destroy Jacob 
and his company if he so pleased. Jacob thought it best, therefore, 
to send messengers ahead with presents to Esau, so as to pacify him 
and secure his orood-will beforehand. The messengers started ; but 
in a little while they came dashing back, scared almost to death, and 
brinofinof news that Esau was cominor w ith four hundred armed men." 

" Hey, boys !" exclaimed Charley. " Guess they'll pepper Jacob 
and his wives this time. But go on, Grandpa ; excuse me, please." 

" Jacob then was alarmed ; what to do he did not know ; he thought 
his end had come ; he could neither flee nor fight. But he was a 



A FAMOUS WRESTLING MATCH. 145 

cunning man. To lose half was not so bad as to lose all ; so he 
divided his company into two parts, in the forlorn hope that if Esau 
should destroy one, he might suppose it to be all, and allow the other 
to escape. Jacob himself did not stay with either party, but hurried 
off to a safe place and began to pray most earnestly, quoting God's 
promises, confessing his sins, and begging God's help against Esau." 

" It seems to me that Jacob never prayed except when he was in 
some great trouble," said Mary, thoughtfully ; " and I am not sure 
that such a person deserves to be answered." 

" Nobody deserves to be answered, Mary ; but God tells us to call 
upon Him in the day of trouble and assures us He will answer. We 
certainly ought to call upon Him in days of prosperity, too ; but He 
is kind and patient, even with the thoughtless and ungrateful." 

"But did God answer Jacob?" Mary persisted. "It don't seem 
to me that He should have answered him." 

" He did not answer at once ; so Jacob resorted again to his own 
schemes. He sent presents by several successive messengers, with 
winning words, for Esau ; for Jacob said to himself, I will appease 
him with the present that goeth before me, and afterward I will see 
his face. But even then he did not feel altogether safe ; so he sent 
his family across a little stream, the brook Jabbok, and then crept 
away in the darkness to pray again. While he was praying, suddenly 
he was seized by a person of immense strength. Probably at first 
he thought himself in the hands of Esau's men ; but he soon found 
that his antagonist was greater than any man. It was an angel — 
like those he had seen in his dream of the wonderful ladder. Jacob 
knew that his time to succeed had now come. He was sure God 
was favoring him. A messenger of God had come, and Jacob deter- 
mined to make the most of it. So he seized the angel and the angel 
seized him. Of course, the aneel could have crushed him in an in- 
stant. By a mere touch he threw Jacob's thigh out of joint. But 
Jacob hung to him with all his might. Let me go, said the angel, 
for the day breaketh. He could have gone had he really cared to, 



146 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



but he was testing- Jacob by that request. Jacob stood the test 
grandly, for he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." 

" Good for Jacob !" shouted Charley. " He was no slouch, was 
he ? That was a wrestling match worth talking about, wasn't it ?" 




" And Jacob was left alone ; and there -wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day."— 

Genesis xxxii, 24. 

" Why, Charley !" exclaimed Mary, reprovingly. " How can you 
speak so about such a man ?" 

" I won't do him any harm," said the boy, apologetically. " I mean 
he did just right." 

"That is what the angel thought of him ; for he did bless Jacob 



A FAMOUS WRESTLING MATCH. 147 

right there and then and eave him a new and honorable name as a 
reward for his courage and perseverance." 

" What name did he eive him ?" asked all at once. 

" Israel, which means, Prince with God." 




"And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him : and they 

wept." — Genesis xxxiii, 4. 

"I'll bet Jacob — Israel, I mean — was glad then." 

" Yes, Charley. Lame though he was, he was glad, for he knew 
that God favored him and that Esau would do him no harm. The 
next day Esau met him lovingly, and had a good time with him." 

" That was just too nice !" was Carrie's closing comment. 



148 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



THE FRUITS OF ENVY; 

Or, BARTERING AWAY A BROTHER. 



" X ~Y THAT can you tell me about the sons of Jacob?" asked 
\/\ / Grandpa, as his happy little hearers gathered about him, 
* * several little neighbors also being in the group. 

" He had twelve sons, and they are called the twelve, patriarchs," 
was Mary's answer. 

"One was Joseph," said Charley, "and he was the right kind of a 
boy." 

" Benjamin was the youngest," timidly ventured one of the visitors. 

" But Joseph was the nicest," added another. 

"Oh! I see who is the favorite," said Grandpa; "so Joseph shall 
be the hero to-night. His father had become very rich. His older 
brothers were almost always away from home attending to the 
flocks and herds, which were scattered about over the country wher- 
ever pasture and water could be found. Joseph had become a well- 
grown lad, about seventeen years of age ; Benjamin was a little boy. 
These two were the sons of Rachel, and she was dead. Jacob was 
very fond of these two boys ; they were his constant companions. 
He dressed and cared for them in the very best manner. This made 
the other brothers envious, especially of Joseph, who often brought 
them orders from their father, and who several times had dreamed 
of himself as a great man ruling over the rest of the family. Can 
you tell me about his dreams ?" 

"He dreamed," said Mary, "that while out in the harvest-field his 
brothers' sheaves all bowed down to his sheaf. Afterward he dreamed 
that the sun, moon, and stars made obeisance to him." 



THE FRUITS OF ENVY. 149 



" What is meant by made obeisance ?" asked Charley. 

" Made their best bow to him," answered Grandpa. 

"They must have thought he was putting on airs," said Charley, 
with something of a contemptuous curl on his lip. 

" I guess they did," added Grandpa ; " and so one day when he 
came to Dotham, a long way from home, to bring them messages 
from their' father, they concluded to put him out of the way, and be 
done with him and his dreams. He could not escape. They were 
ten to one, and the ten were men, the one only a boy. First they 
thought to kill him ; then they put him into a deep pit. His brother 
Reuben meant to get him out of that'on the sly and send him home, 
but in Reuben's absence a few hours later a caravan of traders bound 
for Egypt came along. To these men, who were ready to buy any- 
thing, the brothers sold Joseph for a slave, and he was led away to 
the far-off land to which they were bound. So they bartered away 
their brother." 

" How far off was Egypt, Grandpa ?" asked Charley, with an eye to 
the actual amount of traveling to be done. 

"About four hundred miles, over rough and dreary stretches of. 
land infested with cruel and thievish tribes of people. The whole 
distance had to be done on foot. There were neither railroads, canal- 
boats, nor stage-coaches, and for slaves such as Joseph had become 
there were not even horses or camels to ride. About ten or fifteen 
miles a day is as much as a caravan can travel, so the journey was 
lonor anc j tedious." 

"Why did not Joseph run off and go back home?" inquired Char- 
ley ; " he could easily have done that." 

" Not so easily as you think. Aside from the distance and the 
difficulties of the way, so valuable a slave as he would be carefully 
watched. Probably, too, he was put upon his honor not to run away, 
and with Joseph that would be stronger than any chain. He would 
not break his word." 

"But why didn't he write or send word home?" asked Carrie 
10 



150 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" Few persons in that day could write at all. There were no post- 
offices or mail-carriers to accommodate the people, and between one 
nation and another there was hardly any communication at all. As 
to sending word, Joseph may have tried it. He probably did try it, 




" And they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the hhmaelites for twenty piece* 
of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.' — Genesis xxxvii, 28. 

but that method would not be very certain. Situated as he was, being 
the purchased property of another man, he may have deemed it dis- 
honorable to make any effort to get away untii at least his owner 
could be paid for the loss. But back of Joseph's stay in Egypt there 
was. a purpose Qf ^God's to keep him there and to use him there in a 



THE FRUITS OF ENVY. 151 



most important and honorable way. Joseph, doubtless, had been 
made to know that this was God's will ; so he cheerfully submitted 
and waited for God to work out the whole matter." 

" Yes, but God let Joseph get into prison," objected Charley. 

" But he brought him out of it with higher honor," replied Grandpa. 
"An old hymn says: 

" In the furnace God may prove thee, 

Thence to bring thee forth more bright ; 
But can never cease to love thee ; 
Thou art precious in His sight. 

That is what He did with Joseph; He did bring him out more bright." 

"Why, yes," chimed in Mary; "by Joseph being in prison Pharaoh 
heard of him and called on him to interpret his dream. In that way 
he became pleased with Joseph and gave him charge over gathering 
and distributing food in the famine. Joseph could not have gone 
home while he was in prison, and when he became such a great man 
I don't suppose he wanted to go home." 

"Probably not," added Grandpa; "he had come to see that God 
was with him in Egypt, and he was willing to let God work it all 
out." 

"And that is a blessed way to live," Mrs. Reed added. "To be 
where God would have you, even though.it be in prison, and to do 
what He wishes, even though it be to suffer, is the whole of one's 
duty and the sure path to happiness." 

" I always thought Joseph had lots of ups and downs in his life," 
said Charley, as the party rose to separate ; " but I guess the ups had 
the best of it." 

" Very likely," said Grandpa, "for those who live aright always 
rise. It is the sure way to get up in the world." 



152 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

FROM PRISON TO POWER; 

Or, GOOD BROUGHT OUT OF EVIL. 



WHAT happened to Joseph when they got him to Egypt?" 
asked Charley. " Did they sell him right off, or were 
they stuck with him ?" 

" I don't know," answered Grandpa. " He was a very desirable 
slave, being young, handsome, healthy, and intelligent. His owners 
would be very apt to hold him for a good customer who would pay 
a big price. Such a customer they found in Potiphar, who was a high 
officer under Pharaoh, the King-." 

" How much did he pay for Joseph?" was Charley's next question. 

" We do not know. He took Joseph, however, to his house to 
serve there, and so trustworthy and competent did he find Joseph, 
that by and by he made him ruler over all his goods. Everything 
was trusted to the young man, and Potiphar was so well pleased that 
he asked no questions, but fully enjoyed the prosperity which came 
under Joseph's care. But at last base falsehoods were told concern- 
ing Joseph, and in a fit of anger Potiphar threw Joseph into prison." 

"That was too Dad," declared Carrie and Mary together. "But," 
asked the first, "couldn't Joseph prove his innocence and get out?" 

"No, darling; he was only a slave, and justice in those times was 
not for the poor and the lowly. A great man had put him in prison, 
and there he had to stay. He had no friend to look after his interests. 
He was alone in Egypt." 

"A hard case for the lad," added Charley. " I wish I'd been there ; 
I'd have seen to him." 

" That's kind, Charley," said Grandpa ; " but while alone and friend- 



FROM PRISON TO POWER. 153 



less so hr as men were concerned, his interests were not neglected, 
for the Lord was with Joseph." 

"That's all right," responded the boy; "but what good could that 
do him in prison ?" 

'■ So much that the keeper of the prison made him overseer of all 
the other prisoners. He was the head man there, and all he did pros- 
pered. By this means he was at good work, and except that he could 
not leave the prison, he had all that he could desire. Then, too, he 
could do good to his fellow-prisoners. For instance, one night two 
of them had strange dreams, which worried them all the next day till 
Joseph interpreted or explained them to the men. This* made one 
•of them happy, for it assured him he was about to be set free and to 
be restored to honor in the King's palace. The other was not so 
happy, for it assured him he was about to lose his head." 

" And did all this come true ?" asked Mary. 

" It did ; and that, too, as Joseph said, within three days. But the 
King's chief butler, who was the one restored to power in the palace, 
forgot Joseph, and forgot a promise he made to try to get Joseph 
out of prison." 

"That was mean!" exclaimed Carrie, indignantly. "I trust I'll 
never forget my friends, whether in prosperity or adversity." 

" How did Joseph get out of prison, then, Grandpa?" 

" Why, Charley, he did not get out for two full years. Then the 
King had two strange dreams in one night. They worried him very 
much, but none of his wise men could tell him what they meant." 

" What were the dreams, Grandpa ?" asked Carrie. " I have read 
them, but I really forget what they were." 

"Turn to Genesis xli, 1-7, my dear, and read about them." 

Carrie did as directed and read : "And it came to pass at the end 
of two full years that Pharaoh dreamed, and behold, he stood by the 
river. And behold, there came up out of the river seven well-favored 
kine and fat-fleshed ; and they fed in a meadow. And behold, seven 
other kine came up after them out of the river ill-favored and lean- 



154 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



fleshed, and stood by the other kine upon the brink of the river, 
And the ill-favored and lean-fleshed kine did eat up the seven well- 
favored and fat kine. So Pharaoh awoke. And he slept and dreamed 
the second time, and behold, seven ears of corn came up upon one 




" And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Phaiaoh what hi 

is about to do." — Genesis xli, 25. 

stalk, rank and good. And behold, seven thin ears and blasted with 
the east wind sprung up after them. And the seven thin ears de- 
voured the seven rank and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and be- 
hold, it was a dream." 

" That was a dream worth having," exclaimed Charley. 



FR OM PRISON TO PO WER. 1 55 

" How did it come, Grandpa, that Joseph was called in when the 
wise men failed ?" asked Mary. " I thought he was quite forgotten 
in the prison." 

"As these dreams were talked over," answered Grandpa, "the 
chief butler remembered Joseph and told the King what Joseph had 
done for himself and the other prisoner. Then Joseph was sent for. 
After shaving and putting on clean clothes, he came and stood before 
the troubled King, who told him the dreams and asked what they 
meant." 

" That was a mighty good chance for him. I'd like some big King 
to send for me and give me a chance ; I'd show him some things — I 
would." 

" That's what Joseph did, Charley. He showed the King some 
things, explaining that for seven years there was to be plenty in the 
land, and then for seven years so terrible a famine that all the food 
would be consumed. Joseph did not claim to explain this by any 
knowledge or skill of his own, but solely by the help of the Lord his 
God." 

"What did Pharaoh say to Joseph's explanation?" asked Carrie. 

" He asked what he should do, and Joseph told him to store up 
provisions for seven years while they were abundant, and by this 
stock to keep the people alive in the seven years of famine." 

" That was cute," said the boy. " That's what I 'd have told the 
old o-entleman to do." 

" He, too, thought it was cute," said Grandpa, " and he very sen- 
sibly thought Joseph the man to carry out the scheme, so he said at 
once, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt ; only in the 
throne will I be Greater t nan thou." 

"That was a boost!" exclaimed Charley. "He bounced from 
prison to power quick, didn't he ?" 

"Yes, Charley," said Grandpa, smiling at the lad's odd way of 
saying it. " God knows how to bring good out of evil." 



15G GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



HUNGRY AND HELPLESS: 

Or, BOYHOOD'S DREAMS FULFILLED. 



GRANDPA, in the account of Joseph's strange doings in that 
strange land of Egypt there are two verses that I don't un- 
derstand at all. Let me read them." In this way Mary 
began the next conversation. Grandpa nodded assent, and she "read 
as follows : 

"And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand and put it upon Jo- 
seph's hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold 
chain about his neck. And he made him to ride in the second chariot 
which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee; and he made 
him ruler over all the land of Egypt." 

" The ring, the robe, and the chain," said Grandpa, as Mary ended, 
" were tokens of royal authority. He who wore them represented 
the King, and was honored accordingly. The second chariot was 
that next in rank to the Kind's, his being- the first. To ride in the 
second chariot was to appear in public as next in power to the King 
himself. The cry, Bow the knee, was usual when royal persons or 
their representatives went abroad. Altogether, these honors made 
Joseph appear in a very exalted position, and yet he was then a young 
man, only some thirty years of age." 

" What did Joseph do for the King ?" asked Charley. 

" His first duty was to go through the land during the seven years 
of plenty and gather up all the provisions he found. These he stored 
away very carefully. When the famine came and people began to 
be in want, he was to sell food or give it away, as he saw best, and 
in this way to save the people from starving." 



HUNGRY AND HELPLESS 



157 



"I can't imagine how such a terrible famine could occur. We 
don't have famines now, do we, Grandpa?" 

"Yes, Mary. In Ireland, in 1846, the potato-rot destroyed the 
only crop of that country, and a fearful famine followed. Relief 




" And he made him ride in the second chariot which he had : and they cried before him, Bow the knee: 
and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt." — Genesis xli, 43- 

ships were sent from this and other countries, but thousands of peo- 
ple starved. In 1872 the rice crop failed in India, and famine fol- 
lowed. In 1874 locusts destroyed the vegetation in the State o\ 
Kansas, and terrible want followed. In Egypt famine occurs fre- 
quently when rain fails to fall in the interior, in which case the river 



158 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



Nile does not overflow and water the lower country, and so, for the 
want of moisture, crops do not come to perfection, and in some in- 
stances are wholly lost." 

"Oh! dear," sighed Carrie, "I hope we'll never have a famine." 

"We may, darling, but the chances are in our favor, for if our 
crops were to 'fail the telegraph would at once tell our wants, and 
railroads and steamships would hurry in produce from other places. 
We would have to pay more for food, but the probability is that we 
could buy all we might need." 

''But wasn't Joseph's famine the worst there ever was?" asked 
Carrie, with almost tearful interest. 

'Probably, for it continued so long and reached so far. Away off 
in Canaan rich men like Joseph's father were in want. They were 
hungry and helpless. Food could not be had in their land at any 
price. But there came a report that food could be had in Egypt, so 
Jacob sent his ten elder sons to buy what they needed. In this way 
it came to pass that they came face to face with Joseph, whom they 
had not seen for twenty years or more." 

" No wonder they did not know him," said Mary, "and he was now 
so great and so grand." 

" But he would very easily know them," continued Grandpa. " No 
doubt he had looked for them, and when they really came, he deter- 
mined to try them and see what sort of men the}- had become. He 
began by talking roughly to them, and insisting that they were spies. 
Then he locked them up for three days and afterward sent them off 
with food, but keeping Simeon as a pledge that they would come 
back and bring Benjamin, their youngest brother. In these troubles 
they thought of their own cruelty to Joseph so many years before, 
and said to each other that because of it this trial had come. Poor 
Simeon lay in prison while the brothers hurried back home. On the 
way they were surprised by finding in the top of each man's sack the 
very money which they had paid for food. This worried them sorely. 
On reaching home they told their father all that had happened, 



160 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



and his heart was almost broken for Simeon's absence and because 
Benjamin, too, had to go to Egypt. He wept aloud, and declared it 
would bring down his gray hairs in sorrow to the grave." 

"That was too bad," said Carrie, with a voice full of emotion. 
"Joseph would not have asked for Benjamin if he had thought, I'm 
sure." 

" He wanted to make his brothers taste the sorrows they had 
caused others, and he knew that in the end they would be made glad. 
They delayed to return for a few daysy dreading it, no doubt, but at 
last hunger compelled, and back they had to go. It was hard for 
Jacob to spare Benjamin, but it had to be done. They started back 
with presents for the great ruler and with money to pay for the first 
lot of corn and to buy more. In a few days they were again before 
Joseph. Then they had a fresh alarm. He ordered them to his own 
house, and they feared it meant evil ; but they had to go. At the 
door they talked with his head servant, but he spoke pleasantly 
to them and brought Simeon out of jail to join them. So they waited 
for Joseph, with whom they learned they were to dine. At last he 
came, and they all bowed before him, thus fulfilling the dream of his 
youth. Then he fed them, went out and had a cry to himself, came 
back and had a merry time with them. Then he let them start home- 
ward once more, but again the money had been returned into their 
sacks, and a silver cup of his had been put into Benjamin's sack. 
On the pretext of their having stolen these treasures, he had them 
brought back once more, and Benjamin was demanded as a slave 
because of the cup. Then they all wept and plead before Joseph, 
protesting their innocence, until he could stand it no longer, but 
weeping aloud, he made himself known to them and fully forgave 
them." 

" Hurrah for Joseph !" shouted Charley, as Grandpa ceased speak- 
ing ; " he was a splendid chap, and don't you forget it." 

" He was indeed. No sooner had he assured his brothers of theif 
safety than he said, Haste ye, and go up to my father and say unto 



HUNGRY AND HELPLESS. 



161 



him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt ; 
come down unto me, tarry not- All his father's people were bidden to 
come also, with their children and flocks and herds. Indeed, they 
were to bring all they had right into Egypt, where a section of the 
best land, called Goshen, was set apart, for them." 




" And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen. . . . 
And he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while." — Genesis xlvi, 29. 

"That was splendid," exclaimed Mary. "Joseph was so great and 
so generous I don't wonder his family were willing to move into the 
land where he ruled. I'd have moved myself to be near so nice and 
so rich an uncle." 



1G2 GRAXDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

HARD TIMES; 

Or, MUCH WORK AND LITTLE PAY. 



"~1 HEARD some men talking to-day about hard times," began 
Grandpa Goodwin when the children were settled quietly and 
-*- looking expectantly at him. "They agreed that we were 
having hard times, many people being out of work and those at work 
being poorly paid. I do not think they were altogether fair, but I 
can tell you a story about times that were really very hard." 

"Is this a Bible story, Grandpa?" questioned Carrie, seemingly 
in doubt from the beo-innin^ made. 

" Yes, darling — a Bible story ; for God's people have often seen 
hard times. You remember how splendidly Joseph settled his kin- 
dred in Goshen and how happy they were. They came at once 
when Joseph sent for them. Nothing but want was in Canaan and 
plenty was in Egypt ; so they gathered together their children and 
servants, with all their goods, and soon were on their journey. 
They had no telegraph to announce their approach; so as they 
neared Joseph's city, one of the brothers hurried on to tell him. 
Then Joseph ordered out his own splendid chariot and drove out 
to Goshen to meet his father. That was a happy meeting. The 
Bible says that Joseph fell on his father's neck and wept a good while. 
He did not weep for sorrow, but for joy, and his dear old father 
said, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face." 

" Pshaw !" exclaimed Charley. " I wouldn't want my father to die 
when he gets home just because he saw my face, and I don't think 
I'd cry much either." 

" A little while after their arrival," continued Grandpa, " Pharaoh 



HARD TIMES. 



163 



sent for Jacob and had a talk with the grand old man and with some 
of the brothers also. He welcomed them to Egypt, and they were 
soon happily settled and greatly prospered, for God favored them 
for their father's sake and their brother's. They little thought in 




" They did set over them taskmasters, to afflict them with their burdens." — Exodus i, II. 

that glad hour of the troubles they were yet. to see in Egypt. But 
dear, old Jacob died, and finally Joseph, too, passed away. The 
King, also, who had honored Joseph, and all the people who had seen 
and known him, died. But Jacob's descendants had become very 
numerous in Egypt and were in all parts of the land. At last there 



164 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

came a cruel King, who thought these people were becoming entirely 
too many. We must grind them down, said he, and kill them off. 
So he be^an to build great cities and made the Israelites do an im- 
mense amount of terribly hard work ; he also put them under task- 
masters, who drove and beat and abused them until their lives were 
a continual scene of torture. The cruel Kin^ also ordered that all 
their boy babies should be thrown into the river. So he abused 
them everywhere and all the time." 

" Those were hard times indeed," said Mary. " I'd rather be out 
of work and starve than work in that terrible way." 

"I wouldn't have dons their old work," added Charley. "I'd have 
run aw&y." 

" Many of them thought that, too, I suppose," said Grandpa; "but 
we don't know that any of them did get away. They were too 
closely watched. At last, however, better fortune happened to one 
of their little boys. His mother would not drown him, but she was 
afraid to keep him about the house, lest some of Pharaoh's soldiers 
should find and kill him ; so she made a little basket like a boat and 
cemented it so it would not leak. Into this she put her baby boy, 
whose name was — what?" 

" Moses !" came from them all in an instant. 

"Yes; Moses. And that was the greatest basketful of blessing 
the world ever saw. Can you tell why ?" 

" Because Moses got the children of Israel out of their hard times," 
answered Carrie. 

" Because Moses became so great and good," added Mary. 

" Well answered, my dears ! I see that you are acquainted with 
Moses," said Grandpa, pleasantly. "But our hard times make it 
necessary for me to go and call on some of the poor to-night; so 
we will content ourselves with this little chat. To-morrow night we 
will see how better times did come through the little boy who was 
hidden in the basket." 



A WAIF ON THE WA TER. 165 

A WAIF ON THE WATER; 

Or, FLOATING INTO FORTUNE. 



H 



OW it came to pass," began Grandpa, " that Moses led 
the children of Israel to better times is what I want to tell 
you to-night. When his mother put him in the little basket 
by the river, she sent his sister, Miriam, to watch, lest any harm 
should come to him. When the daughter of Pharaoh found him, his 
little sister came running to her and asked whether she might go 
and get a nurse for the baby. Permission was given, probably more 
in fun or girlish romance than for aught else, and Moses' own 
mother was soon engaged to nurse and bring him up for the Prin- 
cess. From this loving mother, and while yet a little child, Moses 
learned to serve God and to sympathize with his suffering kindred. 
Though a little waif on the water, yet, under God's guidance, he 
floated into the best of fortunes." 

"Did he live in the palace of that wicked King?" asked Carrie. 

"In all probability he did. We know that the Princess had him 
taught in all the learning of that day. He became a thoroughly 
educated and highly cultivated man. She also wished him to give 
up all interest in the Israelites and to become her adopted son ; but 
Moses refused, choosing rather, as Paul says, to suffer affliction with 
the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season." 

"Well, that was noble, wasn't it?" 

"Yes, Mary," continued Grandpa; "you will search long and far 

before you find a man who is the equal of Moses in all that is great 

and good. What to do for his people was not at all clear to him, 

till one day he was out looking on his brethren at their work, when 

11 



166 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



he saw an Egyptian task-master cruelly abusing one of them. That 
was more than Moses could stand. He sprang forward, slew the 
Egyptian on the spot, and buried his body in the sand." 

" Served him right !" shouted Charley, warmly. " Good for Moses !" 




" And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river. . . . And when she sate 
the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it." — Exodus ii, 5. 

" It came near not being good for Moses, though," added Grandpa, 
" for his act was seen by others and was talked about until Pharaoh 
himself heard it and determined to kill Moses. Learning this, pos- 
sibly from his foster-mother, the Princess, Moses left Egypt in haste 
and went away toward the far East, into the land of Midian." 



A WAIF ON THE WATER. 



167 



"What a pity !" exclaimed Mary. " He was so much needed just 
then in Egypt, and yet he had to go so far away." 

" Possibly not so much of a pity," replied Grandpa. " God was 
leading him and fitting him for his coming work. God was in no 




" And he looked this way and that way, and, when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, 
and hid him in the sand." — Exodus ii, 1 2. 

hurry about this work, either, strange though that may seem. Moses 
was forty years old when he went away from Egypt and he stayed 
away forty years more. All that while God saw fit that His people 
should continue to suffer. At the end of this time He appeared in 
a burning bush and spoke to Moses, ordering him to go back to 



168 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



Egypt and demand of the King that the children of Israel should ^o 
free. Moses was afraid to undertake such a work, but God led him 
along till he and his brother Aaron met, and, on God's orders, went 
together and made the demand. The King scouted the idea, and 
at once gave orders that the ta.sks of the people should be terribly 
increased. That made them fairly rage at Moses, and he naturally 
felt much discouraged at the failure." 

"I should think he would," answered Charley; "and I don't see 
how he could fail if the Lord really sent him." 

" That was just the way Moses felt," answered Grandpa. "He 
had gone to his kinsmen and told them what the Lord meant to do; 
he had shown them the signs God appointed to prove his errand ; 
the people had joyously hailed him as a deliverer ; but now he was 
spurned by the King and the people were harder worked and worse 
treated than ever. They were bitterly disappointed and " 

"Tearing mad, I'll bet!" interrupted Charley, with an excited 
manner. "They must have thought he had been fooling with them." 

"Well, yes; I suppose that was so. When they saw Moses and 
Aaron they gave them a piece of their mind in rather bitter fashion, 
so that Moses was quite out of heart and said to the Lord, Why is 
it that Thou hast sent me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak 
in Thy name, he hath done evil to this people ; neither hast Thou 
delivered Thy people at all." 

"Poor Moses!" sighed Carrie. "He floated into good fortune at 
the start, but now bad fortune seems to be his." 

" He got left badly that time," said Charley, and just at that 
moment Grandpa was called away ; whereupon Mary said, " And we 
got left, too, didn't we ?" 




THE VISION IN THE BUSH. 



170 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

A STRANGE SNAKE STORY; 

Ok, ONE SWALLOWING A MULTITUDE. 



"/ GRANDPA," began Carrie, "I was reading in the fourth 
I -y- chapter of Genesis where it tells about Moses and about 
^-^ his rod becoming a serpent. I must say I don't under- 
stand it. Tell me about that snake business." 

" Oh ! yes," exclaimed Charley. " Snakes are my chums." 
" What you refer to, Carrie, occurred when God appeared in the 
burning- bush and gave Moses orders to go to Pharaoh and ask him 
to let the people go. Moses wanted something to prove to the 
Israelites and the Egyptians that God had sent him. He stood there 
with his shepherd's staff in his hand, and God said, What is that in 
thine hand? A rod, answered Moses. Cast it on the ground, said 
the Lord. Moses did so, and instantly it became a great writhing, 
wriggling snake. Moses was nervous about snakes, for he turned 
and ran." 

" I don't wonder !" exclaimed Mary ; while Carrie cried, " Ugh !" 
and started, as if a real snake were after her 

" But the Lord stopped Moses and said, Put forth thy hand and 
take it by the tail ; which no sooner had Moses done than the snake 
became a stiff, wooden rod, as before. Some other signs were given 
Moses, but this is the snake part about which you were in doubt." 

"Yes, Grandpa; and I don't see why God used such a horrid 
thing as a snake to prove that He was with Moses." 

"These signs did the work, however, and convinced the Israelites 
that God had sent Moses to deliver them. We are told that after 
he had done these miracles the people believed." 



A STRANGE SNAKE STORY. 



Ill 



" Yes ; so would I have believed. But I would have been scared 
all the same by a horrid snake." 

" And yet, Carrie, if you saw a man who could change sticks to 
snakes and snakes to sticks; you would be sure he had some super- 




" And Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and before his servants, and it became a serpent" 

Exodus vii, 10. 

human help, even though the snakes were horrid. The probability 
is that the Israelites, too, thought snakes were horrid ; but in what 
Moses did they saw power that could make or unmake horrid things, 
and so a power that could make or unmake the horrible things of 
their slavery in Egypt." 



172 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" That I hadn't thought of, but I guess it's so. One who can 
make or unmake snakes can manage any other horrible thing." 

"Another reason why God used the serpent in this miracle," con- 
tinued Grandpa, " was the fact that in Egypt serpents were esteemed 
very highly. The god of good and the god of evil were each sup- 
posed by the Egyptians to dwell in serpents. Serpents were wor- 
shiped ; they were carved on temples and monuments; they were 
embalmed, and so preserved as sacred and precious relics ; for this 
reason no better form of miracle could have been selected for Egypt 
than one showing power over the snake." 

" Well, that is a reason I never heard of," said Mary. " I always 
supposed the stick was turned into a snake just because it happened 
to be in Moses' hand and it looked so much like a snake. But, 
Grandpa, Pharaoh's magicians made snakes the same way." 

" Yes, they were called, and by their enchantments — that is, by 
their manoeuvres and hocus-pocus — they produced snakes. But how 
much trick there was in this we do not know. The final proof in the 
case, however, was that when the several serpents fell to fighting, 
that made from Moses' rod swallowed all the rest ; the one swal- 
lowed the multitude, and so ended the fight." 

"Good for the snake!" shouted Charley. "They're great on the 
.swallow, I know. I saw one take in a bird, feathers and all." 

" I guess that settled the case for Moses, didn't it, Grandpa ?" 

" No, Carrie ; Pharaoh still refused to let the people go. Then 
God sent a variety of plagues upon the Egyptians and afflicted them 
terribly ; but the King grew more and more stubborn. Water was 
turned into blood ; frogs became so numerous as to cover the land ; 
flies swarmed over everything; cattle died of a terrible plague; boils 
broke out on all the people ; hail fell from the clouds and battered 
all their vegetation to ruin ; locusts swarmed over the land ; dark- 
ness rested on everything of theirs for three days, and yet Pharaoh 
would not let the people go. God then determined on one final and 
fearful blow, but of that we will talk to-morrow." 



FLYING FOR FREEDOM. 173 

FLYING FOR FREEDOM; 

Or, A MARVELOUS DELIVERANCE. 



CARRIE opened the next talk by asking, "What was that final 
blow you spoke of, Grandpa ? It seems to me God had 
already struck such awful blows at the Egyptians that 
nothing could be worse." 

" No one knows all that God can do either in a loving way or an 
afflictive way," replied Grandpa. " He is terrible to His foes and 
precious to His friends. In this case He determined that all the first- 
born, both of men and beasts, should die at midnight on a certain 
day." 

" Of His own people too ?" asked Carrie, in surprise. 

" Yes, unless they should sprinkle the blood of a lamb on the posts 
and lintels of their front doors. If that were done, the destroying 
angel, who was to go through the land and do this fearful work, would 
pass over their houses and leave them unharmed." 

"Oh! that was the Passover, wasn't it, Grandpa?" exclaimed 
Charley. " Our Sunday-school lesson was about it once. It seems 
to me awful for so many people to die in one night, and all without 
any sickness or accident." 

" Not more awful than their cruel abuse and murdering of the chil- 
dren of Israel," said Mary, her sense of justice making her tones very 
decided as she spoke. 

" That was the Passover, as Charley says," resumed Grandpa — " a 
feast which to this day Israelites keep with great fidelity, in remem- 
brance of the fact that God spared their forefathers in Egypt so many- 
years ago." 



174 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" How were they spared ?" asked Charley. 

" Why, they obeyed God, and sprinkled blood on the doorposts 
and lintels of their houses, as He told them to do. They waited within 
doors and ate a hurried and simple meal, which God had directed. 




" There was a great cry in Egypt: for there was not a houre where there was not one dead.'' — 

Exodus xii, 30. 

Midnight drew near ; all about them was quiet ; there was no sign 
of trouble ; none of the Egyptians suspected harm ; midnight was 
just at hand ; it came. Listen ! a wail is heard ; another and yet 
another.. Lamentations and weeping rise on all sides and swell into 
a great cry. In every house there is one dead. In palace and in 



FLYING FOR FREEDOM. 175 



dungeon, among men and beasts, all the firstborn are smitten with 
death except alone in the houses of the children of Israel, on the 
doorposts and lintels of which the blood of the lamb had been sprin- 
kled." 

" How terrible !" said both the girls together, and really shudder- 
ing at the story. 

" No wonder," resumed Grandpa, " that Pharaoh rose at once, in 
the dead of night though it was, and that he commanded Moses to go, 
and to take with him his troublesome people. Go they did that very 
night, urged by the Egyptians, and enriched with presents from them 
to appease the God of Israel lest He should strike again and slay the 
•entire nation. So the children of Israel fled from the land of their 
.bitter bondage to gain their long-lost freedom." 

" That was grand," said Mary ; " but why did Pharaoh change his 
mind and chase them afterward ?" 

" Because his heart was full of evil. When the first pang of that 
terrible midnight scene had passed, he began to think of the valuable 
•slaves he had lost, and he determined to bring them back. So he 
marshaled his soldiers, and, taking the lead himself, began the pur- 
suit. Moses had a good start, and pushed on toward the Red Sea, 
which lay between Egypt and the Arabian peninsula. Pharaoh 
thought Moses would be trapped in this position. Along the shores 
of that sea he could not escape either to the north or'the south, for 
steep rocks and strong military stations were there ; so Pharaoh 
thought he could march right down on the Israelites, hemmed in on 
the seashore, and capture the' whole of them. When the Israelites 
heard of his coming, they were terribly frightened ; they thought 
their end had come. But at God's command Moses reached out 
his rod over the sea, and lo ! the waters rolled back, leaving an open 
path through the water by which the children of Israel passed over 
dry-shod." 

"That's a tip-top way to cross the ocean," exclaimed Charley; "it 
don't make you sea-sick." 



176 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Pharaoh arrived just in time to see this wonderful sight, and he- 
knew of no reason why he should not cross by the same path, which 
remained invitingly open. So he ordered an advance, and down 
into the depths of the sea-bottom his chariots rolled and his footmen 
marched. Moses and his followers were now safely on the other 
side ; Pharaoh and his soldiers were in the deepest part of the sea.. 
Then Moses lifted up his wonderful rod again, and back rolled the 
mighty waters, thundering down upon the heads of the doomed army 
below. Horses, chariots, and drowning men were tossed into strasr- 
gling heaps. It was for them the struggle of death. In a few mo- 
ments all was over, and they were in the presence of the God they 
had despised." 

A deep silence rested on the little company as Grandpa ceased 
speaking. After a moment's pause, Mary said, " How thankful the 
Israelites must have been at that marvelous deliverance !" 

" They were," said Grandpa. " Moses and the men sang a splen- 
did song of praise, which is recorded in full in the fifteenth chapter 
of Exodus. His sister also, with a company of women, sang and 
danced for joy with the music of their timbrels and harps." 

On Grandpa's reference to the fifteenth of Exodus, Mary looked 
for the place, and in a moment exclaimed, " Oh ! this is beautiful ? 
let me read part of it." All agreeing, she read : " Then sang Moses- 
and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying r 
I will sing unto the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously ; the horse 
and his rider hath He thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength 
and song, and He is become my salvation ; He is my God, and I will 
prepare Him an habitation ; my father's God, and I will exalt Him. 
The Lord is a man of war ; the Lord is His name. Pharaoh's char- 
iots and his host hath He cast into the sea ; his chosen captains also 
are drowned in the Red Sea. The depths have covered them ; they 
sank into the bottom as a stone. Thy right hand, O Lord, is become 
glorious in power ; Thy right hand, O Lord, hath dashed in pieces the 
enemy." 




OVERWHELMED IN THE WATERS. 



178 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" That is the scene Moore describes so splendidly in a poem which- 
I learned when I was a little girl," said Mrs. Reed, as Mary ceased. 

"Repeat it for us mother, please do," urged the children. She 
yielded willingly to their desires, and repeated as follows : 

" Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea! 
Jehovah has triumphed, His people are free. 
Sing, for the pride of the tyrant is broken — 

His chariots, his horsemen, all splendid and brave ; 
How vain was their boast, for the Lord hath but spoken, 

And chariots and horsemen are sunk in the wave. 
Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea ! 
Jehovah has triumphed, His people are free. 

" Praise to the Conqueror, praise to the Lord ! 
His word was our arrow, His breath was our sword. 
Who shall return to tell Egypt the story 

Of those she sent forth in the hour of her pride? 
For the Lord hath looked out from His pillar of glory, 

And all her brave thousands are dashed in the tide. 
Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea ! 
Jehovah has triumphed, His people are free." 

"" That was indeed a splendid triumph for Jehovah," added Grandpa 
in conclusion. 




CELEBRATING THE VICTORY. 



180 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STOR1 1 S. 

HANDS UP; 

Or, HOW THEY WON THE BATTLE. 



"1 DON'T believe anybody else ever beat his enemies so easily 
as Moses did," said Charley. " Old Pharaoh and his soldiers 

-*- were washed out pretty quick that day." 

" There are other cases," replied Grandpa, " where the Lord's ene- 
mies were destroyed quite as strangely if not so quickly. For 
instance: The Israelites had not much more than begun their jour- 
ney in the Arabian Peninsula, east of the Red Sea, when they were 
suddenly pounced upon in their rear by a roving band of robbers — 
such as even now infest that country. The Israelites had to fight 
for their Qroods and their lives. The attack was a sort of dash. It 
did not settle things one way or another, so Moses determined to 
make a new attack on Amalek, which was the name of this band of 
thieves, and to completely destroy it. He called Joshua, one of his 
bravest and best men, and arranged that on the next day he should 
lead all the men to a set battle with these enemies. Moses himself 
agreed to take position on the top of a neighboring hill and to hold 
out the wonderful rod by which he had already worked so many 
miracles in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the land where they were 
then journeying." 

" I don't see what good it would do just to hold out the rod," said 
Charley, with disapprobation evident in his tones. " If Moses had 
gone into the fight himself and hit' right and left with his stick, he 
would have done some good. But he might have got hurt there." 

"Ah! Charley," said Grandpa, "you forget that God had made 
that rod a token of His own presence and power. When Moses 




WINNINQ THE BATTLE. 



182 GRANDPA GOODWIN 'S STORIES. 



lifted up the rod, it was an appeal to God to use His promised power 
and to show His presence on behalf of Israel. It was a prayer acted, 
rather than spoken. Whoever could see Moses could see what he 
was doing and would be reminded that God was their helper." 

" Oh ! I see," replied the boy. " I didn't think of it that way. 
Moses prayed with the rod, didn't he ?" 

" Yes ; he did just that, and that was his part in the battle. Joshua 
fought, Moses prayed. Prayer and effort always go well together. 
Jesus commanded us to watch and pray." 

" How did the battle come out?" asked Charley. "Who beat?" 

"Well, Joshua got together his soldiers early in the morning and 
out he went to fight. Moses, with Aaron, his brother, and another 
good man named Hur, went to the hill-top, as agreed. The battle 
becjan. All went well for Israel until Moses became tired of holding 
up his rod. His hand sank, and as it sank Amalek got the better 
of the battle. He made an effort and lifted die rod a^ain, and then 
Joshua got the better of it. But Moses could not hold up his hand 
all day. That was just impossible. And yet, on his holding it up 
with the rod, the success of Israel was hancdnor What could he do? 
how should he act? Why, what more natural and proper than that 
the good men on either side of him should come to his help and 
hold up the weary hands — rod and all ?" 

" To be sure !" broke in Carrie. " It was little as they could do." 

" Certainly, my dear. It made the prayer all the stronger that 
three united in it. And they did more than this. They brought a 
large stone and placed it for Moses to sit upon. So they helped 
him by making him comfortable, and their help was acceptable to 
God. The rod was held up and the battle was pushed till night 
came, by which time Joshua had won a complete victory. Amalek 
no more troubled Israel. That was the way they won that battle." 

"Well, that was a novel way to win a battle, I am sure!" was 
Mary's exclamation, while Charley shouted, " Hands up ! — then we'll 
come out all right." 



A POOR EXCUSE. 183 

A POOR EXCUSE- 

Or, WHAT CAME OUT OF THE FIRE. 



WHAT queer times the Israelites had in their journey, 
didn't they, Grandpa ? It must have been real fun for 
the boys and girls who were with them — a sort of an 
all-summer picnic." 

"I am not so sure about that, Carrie," answered Grandpa; "for 
they had many hard experiences on the way. One of the most re- 
markable was when they camped at the foot of Mount Sinai. This 
name belongs to a jagged mass of rocks lying in the centre of the 
Arabian Peninsula, the highest pinnacles rising to a height of about 
nine thousand feet. Among these peaks there is an abundance of 
camping ground, and here the Israelites were halted to receive the 
law from God." 

" What law ?" asked Charley. 

"The law God wished men to keep, including the Ten Command- 
ments and much else. Moses went up several times into the Mount 
to talk with God, and at last God set a day when He would show 
His presence to all the people. It was a great day for them. They 
prepared for it by careful washings and fastings. When it came 
there were terrible clouds on the mountains and such thundering 
and lightning as made the people tremble ; then came smoke and 
jfire playing about the peaks, then an earthquake, and through all 
the din a clear blast, as of a trumpet, was heard. Then Moses went 
up into the Mount, and there God gave him the Ten Commandments, 
written on two slabs of stone." 

" And are those the same commandments we now repeat ?" 



184 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" The same ; and how much God thought of them was shown by 
the terrific splendor of the scene in which they were first given." 

" It was terrible, indeed," remarked Mary ; " and I am sure the 
people must have felt like doing all they could to keep that law." 

" Far from it, I am sorry to say," was Grandpa's reply. " Moses 
was forty days and nights on that mount. He was covered by a 
cloud, and communed there with God. God wrote the Ten Command- 
ments, and Moses wrote all else that God wished him to teach the 
people. At last Moses started down, and was soon joined by his 
tried captain, Joshua, who had waited patiently for his return. To- 
gether they hurried on to meet the people and to tell them of God. 
As they did so, a strange sound reached their ears. What could it 
be ? It was the voice of singing. What could it mean ? Down 
they hastened, and when they came in sight of the people, there 
were the men and the women dancings around a eilded calf which 
was mounted on a pedestal in the very midst of the camp. There 
they were, sinning right under the shadow of Sinai, while Moses was 
in the very act of bringing the law direct from God to guide them in the 
right way. Utterly despairing of any good from such people, Moses 
dashed the stone tablets to the ground, shivering them to pieces, and 
then plunged in among them to stop their sinful sport." 

"Why, what great harm was there in dancing around that calf?" 
asked Charley, somewhat amazed at the indignation of Moses. "He 
needn't have been so awfully mad." 

" Harm ? Why, it was an idol, the figure of the false god of Egypt; 
and now, after the true God had done such wonders for them, they 
turn right away from Him right before that great mountain He had 
so lately used as His throne, and there they made an idol, and that the 
old idol of Egypt, where they had suffered so much, and they dance in, 
heathenish worship before it. Moses was the meekest man of his 
day, but he was justly angry at such an act. Don't you think so ?" 

"Yes," was the one answer of the family, none shouting louder 
than Charley himself. 



A POOR EXCUSE. 185 



" But Moses made short work of this performance," said Grandpa. 
" He sprang in among the people and tumbled over the idol, smash- 
ing it to bits, and tossing the fragments into the fire ; then he called for 
all who were on the Lord's side to join him. Joshua was there, and 




" He saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses' anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his 
hands, and brake them beneath the mount." — Lxodus xxxii, 19. 

others too, and then they were sent to slay every one who stood up 
for the idol. No less than three thousand were killed that day, but 
Moses stamped out idolatry at Sinai." 

"What excuse had the people for doing such a silly thing?" asked 
Carrie, who seemed quite disgusted with their folly. 



186 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



"Excuse? Let Mary read that offered by Aaron for his part in 
the affair. Turn to Exodus xxxii, 23." 

Mary read as follows : " For they said unto me, Make us gods which 
shall go before us ; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up 
out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. And I 
said unto them, Whosoever hath any gold, let them break it off So 
they gave it me ; then I cast it into the fire, and there came out this 
calf." 

"Why," exclaimed Carrie, "did he mean that the calf came out, as 
if by magic, all complete and without any person having worked on 
it?" 

" So I understand him," replied Grandpa ; " and it is one of the 
shallowest excuses ever made for a sin." 

"So I think," said Mary, sharply. "Aaron knew better, didn't 
he?" 

"Sinners generally do know better," Grandpa answered. "God, 
however, is kind, and the people w r ere sorry enough for their folly — 
so God forgave them, renewed the broken tables of the law, and 
once more loved and helped them." 

"Aaron's excuse," continued Mrs. Reed, " reminds me of the belief 
of the people of Ephesus when Paul was there and they made a great 
cry against him for ruining the worship of their favorite goddess, 
Diana. The town clerk spoke of her image as having fallen down 
from Jupiter. He thought he had a good reason for worshiping 
that image, and Aaron meant to give a good reason for what he 
did. But Moses could not be duped, though the people of Ephesus 
were." 




mjflp 



fo;; 






Am 






188 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

THE GORGEOUS TENT; 

Or, WORSHIP IN THE WILDERNESS. 



" "W X IDN'T you say, Grandpa, that when Moses was in the 
1 Mount God told him many other things besides the Ten 

-" — Commandments?" 

" Very likely I did ; for that is the fact, Carrie. God made very 
careful arrangement for the worship to be rendered Him while they 
were journeying in the wilderness. They were moving from place 
to place ; so a permanent house of worship would not do for them. 
God gave orders, therefore, for a gorgeous tent, called the Taber- 
nacle, and of which the Bible has a great deal to say." 

"I am glad you speak of that, Grandpa, for I never understood 
much about that Tabernacle, nor about worship there ; then, too, I 
sometimes think we can worship God as well in one way or in one 
place as in any other." 

" So we can, Mary, if we are so fixed that we must do it in one 
place or not at all, or in one way or not at all. But if we are free 
to choose a place and a way, and yet simply serve Him as may best 
suit ourselves rather than as may most honor Him, why, then self 
and not God is served. But I now speak of those services known 
as public worship. God does demand that we meet together at 
special places for special services, and in the days of Moses that 
olace was the Tabernacle." 

| "Oh! I see," responded Mary. "Just as we meet in our churches 
and Sunday-schools to publicly serve God, so they met at their 
Tabernacle." 

" Precisely so. And God was- very particular about this matter. 



THE GORGEOUS TENT. 



189 



He gave the most exact directions how everything should be done. 
Five entire chapters in the book of Exodus are filled with these, and 
at the end it is said, According to all that the Lord commanded 
Moses, so the children of Israel made all the work." 

"That was good," said Mary. "Everybody ought to obey God 
just that way." 

" When all the work was done, Moses examined it very carefully 
and found all was right. Then the Tabernacle was set up with a 
splendid service, and over it a great cloud, representing God's pres- 




PROBABLE APPEARANCE OF THE TABERNACLE 

ence, came and rested ; while inside the tent, in its inner room — 
called the Holy of Holies — a wonderful light burst forth and shone 
to represent God's glory." 

" What did the tent look like, Grandpa ? Was it like the big show 
tent at the fair last summer ?" asked Charley.. 

" Not at all like that, my boy. The part strictly called the Taber- 
nacle was a tent the sides of which were made of forty-eight upright 
boards set in sockets of silver. It was open at one end, where there 
were splendid curtains hung on pillars. For a roof, several elegant 
layers of curtains were used. This tent was about forty-five feet 



190 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



long by fifteen wide. It was divided by a curtain or veil hung across, 
making an inner room fifteen feet square. This was called the Holy 
of Holies, the outer room being called the Holy Place. In these two 
rooms were the articles used in the service and prepared expressly 
on the orders of God." 

Mrs. Reed at this moment brought out a book with a picture of 
the Tabernacle as it is supposed to have appeared. After looking at 
it and talking about it awhile, Grandpa said: 

" This tent stood toward the rear of an 

inclosed space, which was seventy-five feet 
wide by one hundred and fifty long. This 
space was inclosed by twenty pillars on its 
north side, twenty on its south, and ten each 
at its east and west ends. These were set 
in brass sockets, and from pillar to pillar 
linen curtains hung: forming the inclosure. 
The curtains on the east end were far more 
beautiful than the others, that being the 
entrance. In this inclosure stood the altar, 
where sacrifices were offered, and the laver, 
where the priests washed. Into this space 
only priests and their helpers, the Levites, 
w r ere allowed to come. Into the Holy Place 
priests only could come, and into the Holy 
of Holies the High Priest only could enter, 



L 

o 



A 

D 



CARRIE'S PICTURE. 

and he was allowed to enter but once a year." 

" Grandpa, I think I know how it looked. See, I have made a pic- 
ture of it; isn't this right?" asked Carrie, pushing her slate across 
the table to where Grandpa sat. He put on his glasses, and, scan- 
ning the picture with a smile, said, "Not much of a picture, Carrie, 
but a very good ground-plan." 

"That's what I meant to make, not a nice picture; but isn't it 
right ?" 



THE GORGEOUS TENT. 



19/ 



"Yes, very good. Your inclosure is about twice as long as wide, 
which is correct ; your tent is three times as long as wide ; youi 
Holy of Holies is square — all of which is correct. But what is this 
small square you have marked A ?" 




" And Moses brought out all the rods froi7i before the Lord. . . . And they looked, and took efeiy 

man his rod.''' — Numbers xvii, 9. 

" The altar." 

'•And this circle you have marked L?" 

" The laver." 

." And which end is this near which they stand ?" 

" The east end, where the entrance was and the beautiful curtains." 



192 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Very good. Now let me tell you how God settled the question 
as to who should be his High Priest. Aaron had acted as such till 
some of the people became dissatisfied with him. Then God ordered 
that for every tribe of Israel a marked rod of almond tree should be 
brought to Moses. Aaron's name was to be on the rod of Levi's 
tribe. These rods Moses laid up in the Holy Place, God having said 
that the rod of the man He chose should blossom. The next day 
Moses went in, and behold, Aaron's rod was full of blossoms and 
almonds. Then Moses brought out the rods that all mi^ht see for 
themselves, after which Aaron's rod was kept in the Holy Place as a 
token of his authority and as a rebuke to all complainers." 

."Well, I think that ought to have settled the question as to whom 
God preferred," said Mary. 

" Aaron must have felt all right," added Charley, " but I pity the 
other chaps." 

" How did they offer the sacrifices ?" asked Mary. " I'm not sure 
that I know just how it was done." 

" You will find all about them in the opening chapters of the book 
of Leviticus," answered Grandpa. " As you will there see, the pro- 
cess was about this. A person brought the bullock or lamb, as the 
case might be, to the door of the inclosure, where the priests and 
Levites took charge of it, the man first laying his hand upon the head 
of the animal and confessing his sins. Then the animal was led to 
the altar and killed by the Levites. Its blood was caught in a basin, 
and some of it was sprinkled on the altar. Then the body was cut 
up, and part of it or all of it, as the nature of the offering might re- 
quire, was burned on the altar. 

"That was very odd. Why was that required?" asked Carrie. 

" To teach that without the shedding of blood, or the giving of a 
life, sin could not be forgiven. By this oft-repeated lesson at the 
Tabernacle and the Temple men were prepared to welcome Christ, 
who died once for all for the sins of men." 



LIFE FOR A LOOK. 193 



LIFE FOR A LOOK; 
Or, THOUSANDS CURED THOUGH FATALLY BITTEN. 



" /^~^ RANDPA," began Charley, "why don't God do wonderful 
I -y things now, like He did for Moses, and make everybody 

^-^ serve Him ?" 

" Everybody did not serve Him, Charley ; nor would everybody 
serve Him now, even though He should do the very same wonders. 
God does not wish to startle us with wonderful acts, but rather to 
draw us with loving acts. His love is clearer now than His power 
was in the days of Moses." 

" But they all had to confess then that God watched over and 
blessed them," said Mary. 

" No, dear ; they did not. Hardly had that rod blossomed, of 
which I told you last night, when the people began to speak against 
both God and Moses. Their complaint was that the way was rough 
and hard to travel. Then God sent among them immense numbers 
of fiery serpents, which bit many people, and great numbers died." 

" Ugh !" cried Carrie, with a shudder. "I'd have died at the sight 
of them without waiting- for the bite. ,r 

"Why were they fiery serpents?" asked Charley. "When we 
had fireworks on the Fourth of July we had chasers that some peo- 
ple called fiery serpents. Were they the chaps?" 

" No, my boy. Real snakes were among the people. Why they 
are called fiery is not positively known. They may have had a red- 
dish, glowing appearance, or the bitten part may have become very 
red and hot, as if touched by fire." 

" It makes me shiver to hear about them," said Carrie. 



194 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 

" No doubt many of the Israelites felt as much horror of snakes as 
you do; but the snakes came all the same, and on every side men, 
women, and children were dying. Then the people came to Moses, 
full of confessions, and begging him to pray for them. He did it, 
and God told him to make a serpent of brass, to set it up on a pole, 
and that every bitten person who looked to that serpent of brass 
should live." 

" God was certainly good to deal so kindly with such people !" 
exclaimed Mary. 

"And did the people get cured that way?" asked Charley. 

"Yes; every one that looked to the brazen serpent lived. Xo 
matter how badly bitten, no matter how far gone with the terrible 
poison, no matter from how distant a place he looked, the record 
is, When he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived." • 

" I wish there was a serpent now, that sick people might look and 
get well," said Carrie. 

"The children of Israel kept that brazen serpent some seven hun- 
dred years, but it did them so much harm that the good King Hez- 
ekiah broke it up." 

" Why, Grandpa, how could it do them harm ?" exclaimed all at 
once. 

" Turn to II Kings xviii, 4, and see," said he, smiling. Mary turned 
as directed and read : 

" He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down 
the groves, and brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had 
made, for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to 
it; and he called it Nehushtan." 

"Why did they burn incense to it?" asked Carrie. "I don't see 
any good in that." 

"They worshiped it, and in their worship burned incense as part 
of the ceremony. Because they did this Hezekiah spoke of it con- 
temptuously, and called it Nehushtan." 

" That's a queer name to call it, anyway," said Carrie. 




THE MARVELOUS SERPENT. 



196 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Called it Necushtan" said Charley, slowly. " That was a hard 
name to pall it. What is Necushtan ?" 

" Nehushtan, not Necushtan," said Mary, correcting the slip cf 
Charley's tongue. 

" Well, what does it mean, anyhow ? If it's a good one, I'll call 
the boys that." 

" Nehushtan means an old piece of brass, a brazen thing. It was 
an expression of contempt because of the evil uses to which the ser- 
pent had been put." 

"Yes, they made an idol of it, Grandpa. But then they needn't 
have done that ; so I still wish we had something like it to make sick 
people well," persisted Carrie. 

" We have something far better," added Grandpa. 

"Better? I should like to know what." 

"Read John iii, 14, 15, Mary, and you will see." 

Mary read: "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilder- 
ness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up : That whosoever 
believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." 

" Yes, that is better," said Carrie, thoughtfully. " And do we need 
simply to look to Jesus as they did to the serpent ?" 

"That is what Jesus says. There is life for a look at the crucified 
One, as the hymn has it. So let us all look." 

"But how can we look, Grandpa? Not with our eyes, as I look 
to you, can we ?" asked Carrie. 

" No, darling, because we cannot see Jesus with our natural eyes. 
But to whom do you look for money to pay your school-bills ?" 

"To papa, of course; he always sends that," answered Carrie. 
"But," added she, with light breaking over her face, "I don't look 
to him with my eyes when he's away so far, do I ?" 

" No, dear," answered Grandpa ; " you look with your mind and 
your heart, and your papa does not disappoint you. That is the 
way to look for pardon from Jesus." 

"Oh! I see," exclaimed the girl ; "and I'll try to do just that." 



FORTY YEARS A GENERAL. 197 

FORTY YEARS A GENERAL; ' 

Or, SURRENDERING A GREAT COMMISSION. 



TOW many years did Moses lead the children of Israel, 
Grandpa ?" asked Carrie, when the family was once more 

-■- -*- seated after tea. 

" Moses was forty years old when he fled to the land of Midian, 
eighty years old when he led the Israelites out of Egypt, and one 
hundred and twenty years old when he died." 

"Whew!"' exclaimed Charley, with a prolonging of sound as if he 
would make it last as long- as the life of Moses. " He was a orood 
old gent. Why, he was old enough to be your grandfather, wasn't 
he, Grandpa? He was General forty years." 

" Yes, and good enough to be an honor to any grandson." 

"just like you," broke in Carrie. 

" Thanks, darling," responded Grandpa, with a loving smile. " But 
as Moses grew old he was sensible enough to know it, and to see 
that Israel needed a younger man to lead them ; so he took the mat- 
ter to God in prayer, just as he should have done, and God told him 
whom to appoint. And whom, suppose you, the chosen man was ?" 

"Aaron," said Carrie. 

" No ; Aaron was three years older than Moses, and hence hardly 
the man. What is worse, Aaron was then dead." 

"Joshua!" shouted Charley; " he was a tip-top old soldier. He 
was alive, and he knew how to fight." 

" Correct. Joshua could fight as a General, and he was also good 
and true. A better leader there could not be for any people. So 
God said, Take thee Joshua, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay 
13 



198 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



thine hand upon him. This was done, and Eleazar, who had become 
High Priest in Aaron's place, became special adviser to the new 
leader. Moses did not die at once, but he put honor and respon- 
sibility on Joshua to accustom him to his coming duties, and so 
taught and prepared him for what he had to do." 




" He took Joshua, and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation. And he laid 
his hands on him, and gave him a charge." — Numbers xxvii, 22, 23. 

"That was noble, wasn't it?" said Mary. "It's a pity such grand 
men have to die." 

" It does seem so, but his work was done. He would have failed 
in strength and become less grand had he lived much longer. God 



FORTY YEARS A GENERAL. 



199 



gave Moses a most honorable removal from earth. The people he 
had led so long had come to the borders of Canaan, their land of 
promise, and were about to enter into it. Then God called Moses up 
into one of the lofty mountains lying east of the Jordan River, led 
him up to the very top of Mount Pisgah, and from that lofty height 
showed him all the land the Israelites were so soon to hold. It was 
a magnificent outlook for the venerable man who had so lonq- toiled 
to bring them there. Then Moses died there, and God buried him, 
but just where was never told. No man knoweth his sepulchre. 
Israel mourned for him long and sincerely, as well they might; but 
his body rested where God had laid it, and his soul was with God, 
whom he had served so long. Thus he laid down his great commis- 
sion." 

"Let me read just here Mrs. Alexander's exquisite poem, The 
Burial of Moses. It has lonof seemed to me one of the most beau- 
tiful of compositions." So saying, Mrs. Reed proceeded as follows : 



By Nebo's lonely mountain, 

On this side Jordan's wave, 
In a vale in the land of Moab, 

There lies a lonely grave ; 
But no man dug that sepulchre, 

And no man saw it e'er, 
For the angels of God upturned the sod, 

And laid the dead man there. 

That was the grandest funeral 

That ever passed on earth ; 
But no man heard the tramping, 

Or saw the train go forth ; 
Noiselessly as the daylight 

Comes when the night is done, 
And the crimson streak on the ocean's cheek 

Grows into the great sun : 

Noiselessly as the spring-time 

Her crown of verdure weaves, 
And all the trees on all the hills 

Open their thousand leaves; 



So, without sound of music, 
Or voice of them that wept, 

Silently down from the mountain crown 
The great procession swept. 

Perchance the bald old eagle 

On gray Beth-peor's height, 
Out of his rocky eyrie 

Looked on the wondrous sight. 
Perchance the lion, stalking, 

Still shuns the hallowed spot — 
For beast and bird have seen and heard 

That which man knoweth not. 

Lo ! when the warrior dieth, 

His comrades in the war, 
With arms reversed and muffled drum, 

Follow the funeral car. 
They show the banners taken, 

They tell his battles won, 
And after him lead his masterless steed, 

While peals the minute gun. 



200 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



Amid the noblest of the land 

Men lay the sage to rest, 
And give the bard an honored place, 

With costly marble dressed; 
In the great minster transept, 

Where lights like glories fall, 
And the choir sings and the organ rings 

Along the emblazoned wall. 

This was the bravest warrior 

That ever buckled sword — 
Thn the most gifted poet 

That ever breathed a word ; 
And never earth's philosopher 

Traced, with his golden pen, 
On the deathless page truths half so sage 

As he wrote down for men. 

And had he not high honor ? 

The hillside for his pall, 
To lie in state while angels wait, 

With stars for tapers tall ; 



And the dark rock pines, like tossing plumes. 

Over his bier to wave ; 
And God's own hand, in that lonely land, 

To lay him in the grave. 

In that deep grave without a name, 

Whence his uncoffined clay 
Shall break again — O wondrous thought ! — 

Before the judgment day ; 
And stand, with glory wrapped around, 

On the hills he never trod, 
And speak of the strife that won our life 

With the incarnate Son of God. 

O lonely tomb in Moab's land ! 

O dark Beth-peor's hill ! 
Speak to these curious hearts of ours, 

And teach them to be still. 
God hath His mysteries of grace — 

Ways that we cannot tell; 
He hides them deep, like the secret sleep 

Of him He loved so well. 



" How beautiful !" exclaimed both girls ; then, after a moment's 
silence, Charley asked, " What did Joshua do after that?" 

"God came to Joshua, after Moses died, and encouraged him with the 
best of promises. There Joshua went at his work and led the people 
into Canaan. There they had many enemies to conquer, but Joshua 
was not afraid. One day he went to reconnoitre, as soldiers call 
it — that is, to look around and spy out the situation of the enemy. 
While thus occupied alone, and far from his own men, suddenly an 
armed soldier stood before him with his sword drawn. Maybe he 
wished to try whether Joshua would scare easily, but there was no 
scare in him. Joshua advanced upon him instantly and asked, Art 
thou for us or for our adversaries?" 

"Good for Joshua!" exclaimed Charley; "he's the boy for me. 
What did the man say?" 

" He said he was the captain of the Lord's host — meaning that he 
was a messenger from God, probably the Captain of our salvation, 



FORTY YEARS A GENERAL. 



201 



the Lord Himself. Then Joshua fell upon the ground and worshiped 
his visitor, who told him how to capture Jericho, and then left." 

"Joshua ought to have stood firm and fought well after such a 
visit," was Mary's comment ; to which Charley added " That's so !" 




" There stood a man over against kirn with his sword drawn in his hand : and Joshua 
unto him, Art thou fo uf, or f-ir our adversaries f" — Joshua v, 13. 



said 



Grandpa, rising from his chair, reminded them that the same great 
Captain has said, "Lo, I am with you ahvay, or all the days," as His 
exact words were ; and said, as he left the room, " We, too, ought to 
stand firm and be good soldiers for the Lord." 

" We'll do it," was the children's parting call. 



202 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

WATER HEAPED UP; 
Or ? the wonderful crossing. 



"X AST night, Grandpa," began Carrie, "you said Joshua led 
the children of Israel into Canaan. But they were on the 
-* — •* other side of the Jordan, and wasn't it a big river? How 
did he get them across ?" 

" Sure enough, my child. How did he ? Jordan is a deep, rapid 
river at the season when they crossed. It then overfloweth all its 
banks, as the Bible record says. There was no bridge, nor had they 
any boats, but an immense number of men, women, a*nd children, 
with live stock and goods, had to cross. How could it be done ?" 

"Swim 'em," answered Charley, with the promptness of an old 
commander ; " swim 'em. There's no better way to cross rivers." 

"How absurd!" exclaimed Carrie. "Even if all the men could 
swim, which I doubt, for they had not been much about the water; 
but even if they could, imagine thousands of women and children and 
babies swimming across with all their goods. They'd have a job of 
it, and lots of them would be drowned." 

" Jess so," answered the boy, with a laugh. " Jess so, and that's 
where the fun would come in." 

" What other way was possible ?" asked Grandpa. " How else 
could the crossing be made ?" 

" As it was done at the Red Sea," said Mary. " I don't know how 
else it could be done." 

"That was the chosen way. God gave orders that the priests 
should take up the ark of the covenant and, with it on their shoul- 
ders, that they should march directly into the water. They started, 
but no sooner did their feet reach the brink of the river than the 



'204 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S S TORIES. 

water rolled back and stood in a heap above them, while below it 
flowed away and left the river-bottom bare and dry, so that the peo- 
ple crossed right over without so much as wetting their feet. While 
they were passing the priests stood in the middle of the river with 
the ark, the waters rising behind them like a great wall." 

" O Grandpa ! how could that be ?" asked Carrie, as if in doubt 
whether he really was serious in what he said. 

" How ? my child. Why, it could not be at all if God kept on in 
His usual way, making water run down-hill, as we always see it. 
But He has power enough and skill enough to make it run up-hill 
as well as down, or stand in a heap as readily as flow. God certainly 
can do such acts. The only question is, Will He?" 

" But why did He do it then ?" persisted Carrie. 

" He meant to honor Joshua by enabling him to lead the people 
into Canaan. There was no other way to do it save this. But in 
this way it would be done safely and quickly. None of the Israelites 
could doubt the power that brought them into the land, and they 
might feel sure that the same power would protect them when there." 

"What would the people who lived in Canaan think of such an 
entrance into their land ?" asked Mary. 

" It would certainly impress them very strongly. To see such an 
immense company cross the swollen river in a few minutes would 
amaze and terrify them." 

"And how would the people who crossed feel?" asked Charley. 

" Well, God wished them to remember this great crossing ; so He 
told Joshua to select one man from each tribe, and these should each 
take up a stone from the very centre of the river-bed, where the 
priests had stood with the ark. These stones they were to carry out 
to the Canaan shore and there pile them up as a memorial monu- 
ment. This was done, and in the years which followed many a 
passer-by gazed on this monument and asked what it meant. Then 
the story of the wonderful crossing would be told and re-told, to the 
honor of God and the comfort of His people." 




BRINGING OUT THE MEMORIAL STONES. 



206 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



VICTORY AND DEFEAT; 

Or, WHY THEY CONQUERED AND HOW THEY FLED. 



HAVE been wondering, Grandpa," began Man-, "how the 
people of Canaan liked to have so many Israelites come into 
their land." 



I 

h " T, 1167 dld ^ Hke k ^ alL They Were 8 reat] y afraid and Panned 
how they m.ght drive out the intruders. Near where the crossing was 

made was a great city called Jericho. This was at once shut against 
the newcomers, its gates being closed tight, so that no one could ff o 
out or come in. But God gave that city to Joshua in a very strand 
way. There was no attack made upon it, nor any battle in front of 
it, but for six successive days the Israelites marched around the 
city, the priests leading and carrying the ark of the Lord On the 
seventh day they varied their programme by marching around the 
city seven times ; at the end of the seventh round the priests blew 
their trumpets and all the people shouted." 

" What good would that do ?" asked Charley. - Did they expect 
to scare the people by yelling at them ?" 

H " TI r ^TVf thGm t0 d ° jt - D ° if the y did ' and in *i instant 
down tumbled the great walls and towers of the city, leavino- Jericho 

a tota ruin With the falling walls most of their soldiers must ha!" 
been killed. They would naturally crowd to the tops of the walls 
and the towers to see the marching outside and to resist attack, if it 
should be made When these walls fell so suddenly and so unex- 
pectedly they had no chance to escape. They must have been 
crushed and mangled in great heaps, and the city became the easy 
prey of the Israelites." y 



VICTORY AND DEFEAT. 



207 



"Well, well!" cried Mary. "That was an amazing victoiy." 
" Yes ; but it had in it the seeds of defeat. God had said that all 
the goods of the city should be set apart for Him. The soldiers 
knew this, and had they been obedient all would have been well. 




'// came to pass when 



the people shoutrd with a great shout, that the wall /ell downjlat."- 
Joshua vi, 20. 



But one man kept for himself some valuable stuff that he found. 
No other fellow-soldier knew it ; but God saw it and sent trouble 
because of it. There was another city called Ai, and Joshua next 
went up against it. He thought to take it with just a few men ; but 
his men completely failed, and they were chased in disgrace from 



20S GRA NDPA GOOD WIN'S S TORIES. 



the walls. Then Joshua was in distress; he wept and prayed, until 
God told him the cause of the trouble and how to detect the man 
who had done the wrong." 

" Why didn't God punish the man ?" asked Charley. 

"Yes ; but He wanted to impress the people, so that every one 

of them should feel concern in the case. So He ordered that all the 

tribes should come, one by one, before Him. They came, and He 

took the tribe of Judah ; then all the families of this tribe came, and 

He took that of Zerah ; then this family came by its households, and 

He took the household of Zabdi ; then the men of this household 
» 

came, man by man, and He took Achan. The guilty man was hunted 
down in this deliberate and impressive way." 

"My!" exclaimed Carrie. "They must have felt awfully as this 
search went on. And how must Achan have felt !" 

" Badly enough, I am sure," said Grandpa. "He confessed all 
that he had done ; that he had stolen at Jericho a splendid robe and 
a lot of silver and cmld, all of which he had buried in his tent." 

" How could he do that and his family not know it?" asked Carrie. 

"They did know it, but they concealed it — though they knew it 
was a great sin. Joshua then sent messengers to Achan's tent, and 
there they found the buried treasures — just as Achan had said." 

"Oh, my!" sighed Carrie; "what did they do with poor Achan?" 

"Achan, with all his property and his family, was led out into a 
valley near by. He and his people were then stoned to death and 
their bodies, with all the property, were burned. That was the ter- 
rific manner in which God punished the theft of goods which had 
been set apart for Him." 

" That was awful !" said Mary ; " but it does seem that they de- 
served it." 

"It does," assented Grandpa. "When this had been done, God 
sent Joshua once more against Ai, and he captured it easily. So we 
see that victory follows obedience, while disobedience and defeat 
go hand in hand." 




FINDING THE STOLEN TREASURE. 



210 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

DIVIDING THE INHERITANCE: 

Or, REALIZING A GREAT POSSESSION. 



" "\ ~\ 7"AS Joshua's trouble over when Ai was conquered?" asked 
\/\/ M arv > taking up the thread of the last night's conversa- 
* * tion. " It seems to me it was about time for him to find 
some rest.' : 

" By no means, my dear," her Grandpa replied — " by no means. 
One of his Greatest battles was with the soldiers of no less than five 
kings, who combined to help each other against him. But Joshua 
moved quickly, forced his marches, and came upon them quite un- 
expectedly at Gibeon. He soon put them to flight, and as they ran 
a terrible hail-storm came up and so pelted the fleeing men that many 
of them were actually beaten to death. Still Joshua pursued. Night 
was coming- on, so he commanded the sinking sun to stand still where 
it was that daylight might last and the enemy be completely de- 
stroyed. God heard that command of Joshua ; the sun did stand 
still ; the day was prolonged ; and the armies of the kings were 
utterly cut to pieces." 

" Served them right," muttered Charley. " They had no business 
to trouble Joshua." 

"The kings themselves ran off together and hid in a cave; but 
Joshua heard of it and sent men to roll great stones against its 
mouth, and so shut them in. When the battle was over, Joshua and 
his men went to the cave and opened it, when out crawled the royal 
runaways. After humbling them before his soldiers, Joshua ordered 
them to be slain, and their bodies to be hung upon five separate 
trees." 



DIVIDING THE INHERITANCE. 



211 



" Poor fellows ! That ended their fight with Joshua," said Mary, 
sympathetically, Charley adding, " I guess that took the fight out of 
them." Grandpa then went on : 

"Yes, but other enemies came. Joshua met and conquered all 




" Then said Joshua, Open the mouth of the cave, and bring out those five kings unto me out of the 

cave." — Joshua x, 22. 

who came, but he grew old before the work was done or the land 
was in the peaceful possession of his followers. So the Lord told 
him to divide up the land, giving each tribe a part, and then to con- 
quer it for its owners. Part of the tribes had already received land 
on the east side of the Jordan, but all on its west side was divided 



212 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

among the others by lot, that being the fairest way of settling where 
each should live." 

" How did they do it by lot, as you say, Grandpa ?" 

" Why, Charley, descriptions of the various parts of the land were 
written on slips of parchment. These were all put into a jar, held 
probably by a little child, and where Joshua and the High Priest could 
see that everything was fairly done. Then a leader of each tribe came 
and drew out a roll. The land described on that roll was the prop- 
erty of the tribe for which it was drawn. In this way the long-prom- 
ised inheritance was divided ; the Israelites realized their great pos- 
session in Canaan." 

" This was what God promised to Abraham, wasn't it ?" asked 
Carrie. 

" Yes ; what God had promised, more than five hundred years be- 
fore Joshua divided the land, came to pass. God is in no hurry, you 
know; all the centuries are His. If He does not do His great works 
now, He may do them a hundred or a thousand years hence; but 
what He promises He will certainly bring to pass." 

"The people must have been glad to get settled after so much 
moving around," remarked Carrie. 

"They never knew what it was to be settled till then, did they, 
Grandpa ?" said Mary. 

" No, Mary ; and even then their troubles were not over, for while 
the land was divided, they needed to drive out the people who held 
it and to hold it themselves." 

"But didn't the Lord give them all that land?" asked Carrie, 
seemingly confused at the delay in getting full possession. 

" God's promise to Joshua was, Every place that the sole of your 
foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto 
Moses. If they did not occupy or conquer the land it was not 
theirs." 

" Did they do it ?" asked the boy, who ever looked at the practical 
results. 



DIVIDING THE INHERITANCE. 



213 



" Never entirely. They contented themselves by settling as best 
they could on the land they then possessed. What they had not then 
conquered they allowed to old inhabitants to hold. So th-° Lord's 
people settled down with their heathen neighbors, and both seemed 




" By lot was their inheritance, as the Loid commanded by the hand of Moses" — Joshua xiv, 2. 

jwilling to let each other alone. In this way the Israelites never 
took what the Lord offered them, and what they might have taken 
had they been active and bold." 

"That's the way we all suffer, more or less," said Mrs. Reed, 
"The Lord gives each of us opportunities far better than we use." 
14 



214 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

STRENGTH TURNED TO WEAKNESS; 

Or, HOW THE MIGHTY FELL. 



G 



RANDPA, didn't Samson live when Moses and Joshua did ?" 
_. Charley, who regarded Samson as the hero of heroes, pro- 
-^ posed this question, seeming to fean that he would be 
overlooked in the attention bestowed on other men. 

" Not exactly, Charley," answered Grandpa. " He lived some three 
hundred years after Joshua." 

"Was it so long?" replied the boy. "Well, couldn't you tell us 
about him? He was such a tremendous fellow, I always like him." 

"Just as you wish. Samson was one of the Judges of Israel. In 
all there were fifteen leaders who held this office, Samuel being the 
last, and Samson being but two ahead of him. When Samson was 
born, the children of Israel were in great distress on account of their 
surrounding enemies, especially of the Philistines, who lived on the 
seacoast to the southeast of Canaan. God evidently thought that a 
man of prodigious strength and courage would do them good as a 
leader, so He raised up this matchless man, whose strength is ascribed 
directly to God's power. It is said in Judges xiii, 25, that at times 
the Spirit of the Lord began to move him." 

" Move him how ?" asked Carrie. 

" Move him to do great and wonderful deeds, but what thev were 
is not told us." I 

"Why are not all his doings told us, Grandpa?" inquired Charley. 
" It seems to me we ought to have a whole book on Samson." 

" That might be more interesting than profitable," answered Mary. 
" There are enough dime novels, without trying to turn Bible 



STRENGTH TURNED TO WEAKNESS. 



215 



heroes into their heroes. But, Grandpa, please tell us what we do 
know about Samson, for he was a tremendous man." 

"Yes, do," shouted Charley. "Please go on." 

"Very willingly," answered Grandpa, "for God raised him up to do 




" He found a new jaw-bone of an ass and put forth his hand and took it, and slew a thousand men 

therewith." — Judges xv, 15. 

u special work. His first great act of which we know occurred when, 
with his father and mother, he was going to claim his bride at Tim- 
nath, a city of the Philistines. He was walking apart from his parents 
when a young lion met him. He had no weapon with him, but he 
seized the brute and tore it to pieces as though it had been a kid." 



216 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" How could he, Grandpa ?" exclaimed Carrie. " Why, lions are 
so bier and so strong," 

" But how strong was Samson ? He may have been stronger than 
the strongest lion. And then the Bible says it was a young lion, which 
may mean that it was not an immense, full-grown fellow; but big or 
little, it was a wonderful thing for Samson to kill it as he did." 

"It was something for him to talk about, wasn't it?" exclaimed 
Charley, moving his hands as" if to tear some imaginary lion to 
pieces. 

" Yes, but he didn't talk about it. Even his father and mother did 
not know of it, and when, finally, he did tell it, he made it into a riddle 
for people to guess, because none knew what he had done. So we 
see that Samson was no boaster He did much and talked little, 
which is by far the better way." 

" Tell us some other thing he did. I love to hear about him," said 
Charley, earnestly. 

"At another time," continued Grandpa, "three thousand of his own 
people came to bind him and hand him over to the Philistines. After 
Samson had made them promise not to harm him themselves, he 
allowed them to bind him with new cords and lead him away to the 
Philistines. When they saw him coming, bound and seemingly help- 
less, they raised a great shout. Then God strengthened Samson 
again, and he snapped the cords as if they had been burnt off; then, 
seizing a big jaw-bone of an ass that lay near him, he rushed upon 
the Philistines, striking right and left, and before he quit a thousand 
men lay battered and dead upon the ground." 

" Hoorah for Samson !" shouted Charley, flinging his own arms 
about as if himself smiting down Philistines. 

"That was very grand," continued Grandpa, "and had Samson re- 
mained faithful to God, all would have been well. But he kept bad 
company; he associated with low, base people, and such are sure 
to ruin any man. One of his most intimate friends was a woman 
named Delilah. She was a worthless creature, wl\o bargained with 



STRENGTH TURNED TO WEAKNESS. 217 

the Philistines that she would betray Samson into their hands. She 
pretended to love him very tenderly, and so coaxed him to tell her 
why he was so strong. Instead of plumply refusing her, he made a 
false statement, telling her that if they should bind him with seven 
green withs he would be weak as any other man. While he lay 
asleep one day she bound him with seven withs and then called, The • 
Philistines be upon thee, Samson ! Up he started at that cry and 
snapped the withs as though they had been mere threads." 

" Good !" exclaimed Charley. " Next he ought to have switched 
Delilah with one of the withs." 

" But he did not, Charley. She pretended to be terribly grieved 
because Samson had deceived her, so she coaxed him up again, and 
he told her that new ropes would bind him. She tried this at her 
next good chance, but in vain. He snapped the new ropes with per- 
fect ease, and was free. But Delilah did not give up. She wanted 
to get the pay the Philistines offered for the capture of Samson ; so 
she coaxed him again, and he said, if they would weave his hair into 
the web of a loom he would be helpless. She did it. but off he 
marched with the beam of the loom hanging to his hair. After that 
he told her all the truth, for she pestered him almost to death." 

".And what was the secret of his strength ?" asked Mary. 

" Simply that he was dedicated unto God, and that in token of it 
his hair had never been cut. To cut his hair would be to cancel his 
vow — to signify that he was no more the Lord's, just as to cut off a 
Chinaman's queue indicates that he is no more a Chinaman. This 
Samson told Delilah, and when next she caught him asleep she cut 
his hair, and God forsook him as he forsook God. Then the Philis- 
tines took him prisoner, put out his eyes, and threw him into prison, 
where they harnessed him to a mill and made him grind like a beast 
of burden." 

" Poor, Samson !" sighed Carrie. "How sorry he must have been!" 

" He was sorry," added Grandpa, "and in his sorrow he went to 
God. Mis hair grew again, and as it grew he gave himself again to 



218 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



God, and his strength returned. One day the Philistines were having 
a great festival in their Temple. To make things lively they sent 
for Samson, who was led in by a small boy. Samson asked to be 
placed between the two great pillars of the house, that he might lean 




" And he bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people 

that were therein." — Judges xvi, 30. 

upon them. He was put there. Then he prayed for his old strength, 
and God answered the prayer. Then Samson bowed himself with all 
his might ; the pillars broke, and down came the overloaded house 
with a terrific crash, killing Samson himself and all that were about 
him. So at his death he killed more than in all his life." 



UNDYING DEVOTION. 219 

UNDYING DEVOTION; 

Or, TWO LOVING HEARTS. 



POSSIBLY you may think," began Grandpa, "that all the 
good people of die Bible are men or boys." 
" I was wondering about that," answered Mary ; " for we 
have hardly talked of any women except Delilah and a few others 
I did not like." 

" Well, I will tell you to-night about a most lovely character — 
Ruth. Her home was away off to the east of Canaan, in the land of 
Moab. To that land a family from Canaan came — a man, his wife, 
and their two sons. One of these sons met Ruth and finally mar- 
ried her; the other son married another Moabite girl named Orpah, 
and for some ten years they all lived happily together. Then sor- 
row came ; the father died and both the sons died, so that Naomi, 
the mother, and the two young Moabite women were left widowed 
and poor." 

" Oh ! my," sighed sympathetic Carrie. " It seems to me every- 
body has trouble." 

" Yes, Carrie ; we are born to trouble. 

' Into each life some rain must fall — 
Some days must be dark and dreary,' 

as Longfellow says. After a while Naomi heard that there were 
better times in Canaan, her old home, and she resolved to go back 
there, and her daughters-in-law started with her. As they set out, 
Naomi thought of all they were leaving and urged them to go back 
to their own mothers ; not that she did not love them and wish for 



220 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



their company, but she wanted them to feel entirely free to leave 
her if they so desired." 

"That was good and kind in her, wasn't it?" said Mary. "She 
had to walk all the way and to go alone, too, hadn't she ?" 

" Yes ; she had several hundred miles to go, and there were many 
hardships and dangers in the way, so she would willingly spare Ruth 
and Orpah the toil and the peril and go alone." 

" But what did they do? It must have been hard to choose ; but 
it seems to me," said Carrie, " I would have stayed with my mother." 
."So Orpah thought; for though, when Naomi kissed them good- 
bye and wept over them, they both said, Surely we will return with 
thee unto thy people, yet when Naomi further urged them to act 
carefully in the matter, Orpah kissed her farewell and went back. 
But Ruth clave to Naomi. Then said Naomi to Ruth, Behold, thy 
sister-in-law has gone back unto her people and unto her gods ; re- 
turn thou after thy sister-in-law." 

"Why did she talk about her gods?" asked Charley. "There is 
just one God, isn't there?" 

" Yes ; but the Moabites were idolaters. They had many gods 
and idols which they worshiped, and they did not know the only true 
God, whom we worship." 

" Did Ruth go back this time?" asked Carrie. "It seems tome 
she might have wondered whether Naomi really wanted her com- 
pany." 

" Ruth was not one of the suspicious kind, always looking out 
for slights and offenses. She knew Naomi loved her, and Naomi's 
last words called forth from Ruth one of the sweetest replies which 
ever fell from human lips. Mary may read it from Ruth i, 16, 17." 

Mary turned to the place and, while Carrie looked over her shoul- 
der, she read: "And Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee, or to 
return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go ; 
and where thou lodgest, I will lodge : thy people shall be my people, 
and thy God my God : where thou diest, will I die, and there will I 



UNDYING DEVOTION. 



221 



be buried ; the Lord do so to me, and more also, if aught but death 
part thee and me." 

" How lovely !" exclaimed Carrie, as Mary ceased. 

" When Naomi saw that Ruth was decided to keep her company, 




" And she said, Behold, thy sister-in-law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods ; return thou 
after thy sister-in-law. And Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee." — Ruth i, 15, 16. 

to serve the true God, and to live and die with her people, then 
Naomi urged no more, but the two journeyed lovingly on to Bethle- 
hem, where Naomi had lived before she went to Moab." 

" Good for them !" shouted Charley. 

" When they arrived there was a great stir among the kind peo- 



222 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

pie of Bethlehem. They were grieved to learn how sadly Naomi 
had been bereaved, and how she herself had failed ; she, too, was all 
broken up with the memories of what she had passed through. I 
went out full, she sobbed, and the Lord hath brought me home again 
empty." 

" Poor thing !" said Carrie, wiping away her own tears. " I don't 
wonder she was broken-hearted. She had cause to be." 

"When they reached Bethlehem it was just the time of barley 
harvest. Rich farmers there allowed poor people to follow the 
reapers and pick up for themselves, or glean, the little bunches of 
grain which fell by the way. Ruth was no idler; so she went out 
to glean, and it chanced that she entered the field of a noble and 
good man named Boaz. As she worked along, Boaz himself came 
near. She was so pretty, so modest, and yet seemed so sad, that 
Boaz asked who she was. When told, he became greatly interested. 
He had heard how Ruth had come from Moab with Naomi and how 
good she was ; so he talked very kindly to her and invited her to 
dinner at his house. He also told the young men to drop plenty 
of barley near her that she might find an abundance to gather up. 
Ruth did well that day and Naomi was greatly pleased. Ruth 
worked on in this way till the end of harvest. Boaz saw her often, 
and it was not long till he bought back all the land which once be- 
longed to her husband and to his father, and then what think you he 
did?" 

" Married her !" was the happy guess of all at once. 

"Yes — married her, and gave her and Naomi a good home and 
made them very happy. Ruth's great-grandson was the famous 
King David, and Jesus Himself was one of her descendants. So 
she became honored and happy because she chose to serve the truff 
God and to live among His people." 

" She wasn't like old Lot — she wasn't," said the boy. 

"No. But what became of Orpah?" asked Carrie. 

" Nobody knows. We never again hear of her." 



224 GRAM DP A GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

BRAVE DEEDS OF A SHEPHERD BOY; 

Or, FIT TO BECOME A KING. 



" /^~^ RANDPA," began Charley, "you spoke last night of David. 
I -_- Tell us about him to-night, please. He's just splendid." 
— " He began splendidly," answered Grandpa. "He was a 

brave and noble boy, and such boys are fit to become kings." 

" Tell us what he did when a boy, Grandpa," said Carrie. " I like 
to hear about boys — that is, boys who have grown up to be good 
men." 

" Or boys who may grow up to be good men," answered Grandpa, 
pleasantly. "Well, Carrie, dear, when David was a boy he watched 
his father's sheep. One day he missed a lamb, and on looking for 
traces of it he discovered tracks of two great beasts. Examining- 
closely, he found that a lion and a bear had both been among the 
sheep and had carried off this lamb. Instead of running away, as 
most boys would have done, he caught up the sword and shield he 
had to defend himself with in case of danger and off he started on 
the trail of these wild beasts. Soon he came to a cave, into which 
they had gone, and into which he plunged, sword in hand. A mo- 
ment more, and both bear and lion lay dead, and the lamb was 
delivered out of their very mouths." 

" Hadn't they killed it ?" asked Charley, in surprise. 

"'It seems not. They had caught it as a cat catches its kittens and 
as lions and bears catch their cubs, and so had carried it by the loose 
skin of its back without doing it serious harm." 

" Good boy !" shouted Charley. 

" But the boy was too good to claim for himself the credit of this 




THE BRAYE SHEPHERD BOY, 



226 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



great deed. When he told of it to King Saul, he gave God all the 
praise. It was God, not David, who did it. This success made him 
feel sure of God's help, and because he was sure of it he was not 
afraid to fight the great giant Goliath." 

" Oh ! yes, Goliath ! Tell us about him," cried Charley. 

"Well," said Grandpa, good-naturedly yielding, "the Philistines 
and the Israelites were at war, and David's brothers were in the 
army. One day David went to take them some food, and while there 
he saw the great, boastful, swaggering, giant soldier of the Philistines. 
He was about nine feet high, very stout and strong, and so skillful as a 
fighter that no man dared to meet him in battle. So Goliath used to 
walk along- near to the soldiers of Israel and dare them to come out 
and fight him. David heard these defiant, insulting remarks of the 
giant, and he was very indignant. He heard, too, that King Saul had 
promised high honors to any one who would kill the giant. So David, 
mere boy that he was, offered to go himself and fight Goliath. His 
brothers ridiculed him, but Saul heard what he had said and sent for 
him." 

" Hey! that was good !" cried Charley. " The boy who kept sheep 
sent for to see a King! I'd like to see a real King." 

"And the King was pleased with the boy — so pleased, indeed, that 
he allowed David to go and fight Goliath while both armies stood 
and looked on. Saul wanted to give David armor such as the sol- 
diers wore and a sword, but he was not used to these ; so off he 
scampered to a brook near by, where he selected a lot of smooth 
stones such as he was accustomed to throw from his sling. With his 
shepherd's staff and his sling, the stones being in his shepherd's bag 
at his side, he went to meet the giant, who raged and swore at the 
idea of a boy with a stick and a bag of stones coming against him, » 
as though he were a dog." 

" I'll bet he was mad. Go in, David !" shouted Charley. 

" David did go in and kept cool, too. When near enough, he 
shouted that he came in the name of the Lord of hosts, who would 




GATHERING AMMUNITION FROM THE BROOK. 



228 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



surely smite the Philistines that day. Then the giant started for 
David and David started for him. Everybody expected to see the 
boy crushed in a moment; but see! he draws a stone from his bag 
'and quietly puts it into his sling; he whirls the sling till it hums, and 
then lets fly the stone as if it were a bullet from a gun. But Goliath 
had metal armor, all over him, except that his eyes were uncovered. 
David aimed at one of diese openings, and into it the stone crashed, 
sinking through the eye and into the brain." 

"Good shot! good shot!" exclaimed the boy, fairly squirming with 
delight ; " hit him again !" 

" No; David did not need to hit him arain. It is no fun to have an 
eye knocked out; but when a stone knocks an eye out, fractures the 
skull, and sinks into the brain, the man struck has about enough." 

" So I should think," added Mary. " How did Goliath stand this 
blow ?" 

" Down he tumbled like a great log, knocked senseless by the stone 
from David's sling. But David ran to him and whipped out the 
giant's sword, and with it hacked off the monster's head in the presence 
of the soldiers of both armies. Then the Philistines were scared, and 
away they ran, the Israelites pursuing, until they completely cut to 
pieces their saucy foes." 

" Ha ! I tell you !" exclaimed the boy ; " that's the best yet. I knew 
David was one of them. He's fit to be a kincr sure enough. Hoorah 
for him ! What did he do with the old fellow's head and fixin's ?" 

" They were kept as trophies of the victor)'. The head at Jerusa- 
lem, and the sword in the sacred tent with the holy things. Once 
afterward David borrowed that sword to defend himself against 
Saul : but what then became of it, we do not know." 

The girls were not quite so demonstrative as Charley, but David 
had evidently become a hero with them, and they urged Grandpa to 
tell more of his marvelous exploits ; but company was announced 
and the subject was laid over for the night. 




THE GHASTLY TROPHY 



15 



23) GRANDPA GOODWIN' S ST ORIES. 



A RUGGED WAY TO THE THRONE: 

Or, PATIENCE AND FORBEARANCE REWARDED. 



H 



OW did David come to be King, Grandpa ?" asked Mary. 
" Saul was King, and I should think his sons would come 
to the throne, rather than David." 

" Before David killed Goliath Saul had so disobeyed God that 
God rejected him and sent Samuel, the great prophet and Judge of 
Israel, to anoint as King another person — the son of a man named 
Jesse, who lived at Bethlehem. When Samuel reached the place, 
one after another of Jesse's sons was called. Several of them were 
such fine-looking fellows that Samuel was certain, as each of them 
appeared, that he must be the chosen man. But no. The Lord 
was not seeking a man for his looks ; so the seven older sons of 
Jesse came in turn and were all rejected. Then Samuel asked if 
there was not another. There was another — a mere boy with a 
pretty face and a ruddy complexion. He was keeping the sheep, 
and it was not thought worth while to call him. But Samuel said, 
Send for him. He came, and no sooner did he enter than the Lord 
said to Samuel, Arise, anoint him ; for this is he. It was David, our 
brave shepherd boy." 

" Oh, ho I" exclaimed Mary. " So he knew he was to be King 
when he. fought Goliath, did he ?" 

" Certainly," answered Grandpa; " and he believed God and acted 
like a king. After Goliath was killed Saul took David home to his 
palace. But here a new trouble arose. Saul's son, Jonathan, loved 
David so much, and so did all the people, that Saul became fearfully 
jealous and tried to kill David, so that he had to leave the palace. 



A RUGGED WAY TO THE THRONE. 



231 



Saul probably knew that David was to succeed him as King ; so he 
hunted him everywhere and did his best to kill him." 

" Why didn*t David turn around and kill Saul ?" asked Charley, 
with unbounded faith in David's abilities. . 




" And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and 
goodly to look to. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him : for this is he." — I Samuel xvi, 12. 

" He would not do it. Saul was the anointed Khg, and David 
would not harm him ; nor would he attempt to hurry himself into 
the throne, though he knew he was to get there by and by. He 
was too noble and good for that. He did his duty and waited 
patiently for God to exalt him." 



232 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Did he ever get a chance at Saul ?" asked Charley. 

" Yes ; on two occasions he could easily have slain him, but he 
would not do it. Once David and some of his friends were hidden 
in a cave, when lo ! Saul himself entered there alone and laid down 
to sleep. The men wanted David to kill him, urging that the Lord 
had evidently delivered Saul into his hand. But David contented 
himself with cutting off the skirt of Saul's robe, and for. this, even, 
his heart reproached him. After a while Saul awoke and went un- 
harmed out of the cave ; then David followed, showed him the piece 
he had cut off the robe, and assured Saul he meant him no harm. 
David's conduct quite broke Saul's enmity and he apologized hum- 
bly for his conduct and begged David's favor. So they parted 
seemingly friends." 

"Well, that was noble!" exclaimed Mary. " I should think that 
would completely cure Saul." 

"But it did not," added Grandpa. "Soon again Saul was pursu- 
ing David. But David was not alarmed ; so one mVht he and an- 
other brave man named Abishai determined to go right into Saul's 
camp and into his tent. They started, dangerous though the attempt 
was, and they reached the place where Saul lay asleep, his great 
spear stuck in the ground; his armor hung at his head; Abner, his 
chief soldier, and other trusty men, asleep about him. Then Abishai 
insisted on pinning Saul to the earth with a spear, but David would 
not let him. But he did take away Saul's spear and his water- 
pitcher, which stood by." 

"That was kind!" exclaimed Carrie. "Saul would not have done 
so to David." 

" No. But how does the golden rule put it ? — Whatsoever ye 
zvould that men should do to you, do ye even so to them." 

"I'm not good enough to keep that rule. I'm afraid I wouldn't 
have been so forbearing as David," added the crentle crirl. 

"After David left the tent he crept across to a hill out of reach, 
and then shouted, calling for Abner, who came to see what 



A RUGGED WAY TO THE THE ONE. 233 



the matter was. Then David reproached him for his unsoldierly 
conduct in allowing his master to lie in so much danger. David also 
held up the spear and watsr-jar he had carried off. In the excite- 
ment Saul awoke and recognized David's voice. Then aoain he 




" Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul ' s robe privily." — I Samuel xxiv, 4. 

confessed his sin, said he had played the fool, and promised to trouble 
David no more. Then David said, Let one of the young- men come 
and get the King's spear. So the spear was sent back, and Saul 
and David, with their men, went to their homes." 

" Well, that surely ended Saul's meanness !" exclaimed Mary. 



234 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

"Yes ; but David did not trust him. So he went with a company 
of followers and dwelt outside of Saul's dominions." 

" But had not David been anointed King of Israel ?" interrupted 
Carrie. " Why did he not set up a throne and fight Saul ?" 

" He had been anointed, but he had not yet been called of God to 
take the throne. God set before him a rugged way to the dirone, 
and in patience and forbearance he traveled it. You see how like 
he was to Jesus, who in the same rough way reached His throne. 
In this respect David is called a type, or exact pattern, of Jesus. 
But at last his rugged road ended ; he reached the throne." 

" How did that come about?" asked Mary. 

"Why, Saul became more and more unhappy and desperate. He 
knew that God was angry with him, and he had no hope for this 
world or the next. To increase his troubles, the Philistines came up 
to fight against him. He then began to pray, but God would not 
answer. He went to the High Priest, but he got no comfort. Then 
he went to an old woman who called herself a witch, that she mi^ht 
tell him what to do; but he and she were both scared almost to 
death by the appearance of Samuel, who was dead, but whom God 
permitted to rise from the dead and appear to the frantic King, to 
rebuke him and to tell him that the next day he his sons should die." 

" Horrible !" exclaimed Mary. " And did they all die the next 
day?" 

"Yes; he went into battle with the Philistines. But he was beaten 
and chased ; his best soldiers and his sons were killed ; the enemy 
were in hot pursuit ; then, in a moment of desperation, he threw him- 
self from his horse upon his own sword, so killing himself and dying 
in the same battle with his sons and the best of his army. Saul being 
dead, God sent David to Hebron, where he was crowned King by 
the people of that section, all the nation joining him at a later day." 




DEATH OF ISRAEL'S FIRST KING. 



23fi GRANDPA GOOD II 7.V S S7 OR//.S. 



THE WAYWARD SON; 

Or, TROUBLES AND TRIALS ABOUT THE THRONE. 




AVID must have been Mad when Saul was dead and his 
own troubles were all over and he was crowned King," 
said Charley. 

" But, my boy," answered Grandpa, " his troubles were not over, 
neither was he glad when Saul died. On the other hand, David's 
lament over Saul and his son Jonathan, whom David loved very 
dearly, is one of the most tender and tearfvd in the world. I wish 
each of you would read it and see for yourselves. It is in the first 
chapter of II Samuel. David really loved these men, and mourned 
sincerely over their death." 

'• Was he present when they were killed ?" asked Mar)'. 

" Oh ! no ; he was away on a military expedition elsewhere. Sev- 
eral days later a messenger came and told him the facts. He also 
brought the crown from Saul's head and the bracelet from his arm, 
and claimed tha*: he himself had struck the death-blow to the dying 
Saul. If he thought in this way to please David, he missed his aim 
sadly, for David was indignant and ordered the man killed on the 
spot, because by the man's confession he had slain the Lord's 
anointed." 

" Pretty hard on the chap who meant to do David a favor, wasn't 
it?" said Charley. 

"Yes, but David felt that this man had done a great wrong, and 
his sorrow for Saul's death and Jonathan's knew no bounds." 

"But he got over that," said Charley, "and then he enjoyed him- 
self, didn't he ?" 



THE WAYWARD SON. 



237 



" Oh ! . yes, for he was where God put him and doing what God 
wanted ; but he had many troubles and trials nevertheless. His son 
Absalom caused him deep sorrow, and no sorrow can be keener than 
that caused by one's own children. Absalom got up a great plot to 




" Shimei . . . came forth, and cursed still as he came. And he cast stones at David, and at all 
the servants of king David.'" — II Samuel xvi, 5, 6. 

make himself King. His conspiracy extended so far and was so des- 
perate that David had to fly for his life. With a few trusted friends 
he left Jerusalem, and, with feet bare and head covered, to express 
their sorrow, they went weeping over Mount Olivet to the east of 
Jerusalem and on into the wild, uninhabited region beyond. As they 



238 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

went, a man named Shimei followed, cursing David and hurling stones 
at him. But David was so sorrowful and so humble that he stood all 
this without complaint." 

" Why didn't some of .his men go after the rascal and kill him ?" 
asked Charley. "That would have been the way to settle him." 

"They wanted to do so, but David would not allow it. He chose 
patiently and forbearingly to suffer even this outrage. Absalom, 
meanwhile, had everything his own way at Jerusalem. When he 
had his army organized to suit him, he marched out to meet the army 
which had o-athered about his father. The armies met in a fearful 
battle, and though David had insisted that nobody should harm Ab- 
salom, yet harmed he was — he was killed, and news of his death soon 
reached his anxious father. Then came a scene of heartrending sor- 
row." 

"Absalom was the man whose hair was caught in a tree, wasn't 
he?" asked Carrie. 

"Yes; he had a wonderful head of hair, in which he took "Teat 
pride. As the battle proceeded, Absalom fled for his life. As he 
rode throucm the forest his flvinof hair caught against a low limb, 
jerking him from the beast on which he rode and leaving him hang- 
ing by his hair, helpless and suffering. A moment later, Joab, the 
commander of David's forces, came alono- and thrust a dart through 
the heart of Absalom, and so the young man died. His body was 
cast into a pit by the soldiers and covered with stones." 

"What did David say to that?" asked Carrie; "and he had been 
so anxious that Absalom should not be hurt." 

"The King wept aloud and exclaimed, O my son Absalom ! my son, 
my son Absalom ! Would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my 
son, my son ! So the victory of that day was turned into mourning 
until Joab, the General of the army, came and comforted the weep- 
ing Kino." 

" Let me read to the children," said their mother, "part of N. P. 
Willis's beautiful poem, David's Lament over Absalom. He sup- 



THE WAYWARD SON. 



239 



poses the body of the dead son to have been brought from the 
forest, and to be lying- in state where David was. He says : 



The soldiers of the King trod to and fro, 

Clad in the garb of battle; and their chief, 

The mighty Joab, stood beside the bier 

And gazed upon the dark pall steadfastly, 

As if he feared the slumberer might stir. 

A slow step startled him. He grasped his blade 

As if a trumpet rang; but the bent form 

Of David entered, and he gave command 

In a low tone to his few followers, 

And left him with his dead. The King stood still 

Till the last echo died ; then, throwing off 

The sackcloth from his brow and laying back 

The pall from the still features of his child, 

He bowed his head upon him and broke forth 

In the resistless eloquence of woe: 

" Alas ! my noble boy ! that thou shouldst die — 
Thou who wert made so beautifully fair ! 

That death should settle in thy glorious eye 
And leave his stillness in this clustering hair — 

How could he mark thee for the silent tomb, 
My proud boy, Absalom ! 

" Cold is thy brow, my son ! and I am chill 
As to my bosom I have tried to press thee — 

How was I wont to feel my pulses thrill, 

Like a rich harp-string, yearning to caress thee — 

And hear thy sweet My father from these dumb 
And cold lips, Absalom ! 



" The grave hath won thee. I shall hear the gush 
Of music and the voices of the young, 

And life will pass me in the mantling blush, 
And the dark tresses to the soft winds flung — 

But thou no more with thy sweet voice shalt come 
To meet me, Absalom ! 

"And oh! when I am stricken, and my heart, 
Like a bruised reed, is waiting to be broken, 

How will its love for thee, as I depart, 

Yearn for thine ear to drink its last deep token ! 

It were so sweet, amid death's gathering gloom, 
To see thee, Absalom ! 

" And now farewell. 'Tis hard to give thee up, 
With death so like a gentle slumber on thee; 

And thy dark sin — oh ! I could drink the cup 
If from this woe its bitterness had won thee. 

May God have called thee, like a wanderer, home, 
My lost boy, Absalom!" 

He covered up his face and bowed himself 
A moment on his child; then giving him 
A look of melting tenderness, he clasped 
His hands convulsively as if in prayer; 
And, as if strength were given him of God, 
He rose up calmly and composed the pall 
Firmly and decently, and left him there, 
As if his rest had been a breathing sleep." 



" That was awfully sad," said Carrie. " David had a hard time 
after all, hadn't he ?" 

"Yes, and he had other sorrows, but your young hearts do not 
need to be shadowed with these clouds, so we will bid the sorrowing 
King good-night, and to-morrow talk about another son who was a 
comfort to him." 

" His name was Charley, you bet," exclaimed the boy as he gath- 
ered his school-books under his arm and started for bed. 



240 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

GREATEST AMONG KINGS; 

Or, SPLENDOR DAZZLING A QUEEN. 



" "T "X THICH son of David was the comfort you spoke of last 
\/\/ m & nt > Grandpa ?" was Carrie's opening question. 
* * "It was Solomon, the half-brother of Absalom. As 

David grew old, a full brother of Absalom started a conspiracy to 
make himself King. This came to David's ears, and he at once called 
his trusted officers and caused Solomon to be proclaimed his succes- 
sor on the throne. He was crowned at once, and the people wel- 
comed him with shouts of joy. He was very wise. Nothing seemed 
too difficult for him ; and yet, when God came to him one night in a 
dream and offered him whatever he should ask, lie asked, not riches, 
nor long life, nor the death of his enemies, but he asked wisdom, that 
he might rule properly over God's people." 

"Oh! we had that in our Sunday-school lesson not long ago," said 
Mary, " and God was so well pleased with the choice Solomon made 
that He rave him what he asked and a lot more o-ood things besides, 
didn't He, Grandpa?" 

"Yes, and this shows the truth of what Jesus said, Seek ye first the 
kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be 
added unto you." 

"That's so," added Charley, with real seriousness. 

"David at once turned over to Solomon all the affairs of the kingr- 
dom and the plans he had himself been maturing,' especially that of 
building a splendid temple for God's service. In the presence of the- 
chief rulers of the nation, David gave a solemn charge to the young 
King and also to the rulers, and then withdrew from public life." 




DAVID'S CHARGE TO SOLOMON. 



242 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Did Solomon do all his father wanted?" asked Carrie, as if afraid 
the duties would be neglected. 

"Yes, Carrie; he at once began to build the Temple. His own 
people helped willingly, and so did his neighbors. Hiram, King of 
Tyre, which lay to the northwest of Canaan, was of great service. 
He owned the ereat cedars of Lebanon. Solomon wanted wood 
from these trees, so Hiram allowed him to send wood-choppers into 
the mountains where they grew and to cut great trees and haul them 
to the river ; thence they floated to the sea, and so to Joppa, near 
Jerusalem, where other men took charge of them and hauled them 
to their places in the Temple. So the work went on. In due time 
the Temple was completed and dedicated to the service of God. It 
was one of the most splendid buildings ever erected, and perhaps 
none ever cost so much." 

" How much did it cost, Grandpa?" asked Charley, with his com- 
mercial air. 

"That is hard to tell, because we are not sure as to the meaning 
of some statements made about it; nor do we know all the material 
that was used; nor is any account made of the labor. The gold and 
silver actually used is estimated at over ten million dollars, and this 
was simply for adornment. In addition to building this Temple, he 
did many other marvelous things, and gathered curiosities from all 
parts of the world. He worked out three thousand proverbs and 
made one thousand and five songs. He was wise above all men, 
and rulers came from all parts of the world to talk with him. Among 
these was a strong-minded woman, the Queen of .Sheba. She did 
not believe Solomon was so wonderful, for she came to prove him 
by asking hard questions." 

" Did she catch him with any of them ?" asked Mary. 

"She came with great display," continued Grandpa, "and she did 
her best, but Solomon answered all her questions ; but read what is 
said of her visit in I Kings x, 4, 5." 

Carrie found the place and read: "And when the Queen of Sheba 




THE QUEENLY VISITOR. 



244 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES 



had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that he h>d built, 
and the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the 
attendance of his ministers and their apparel, and his cup-bearers, 
and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the Lord, 
there was no more spirit in her." 

" ha, ha," laughed Charley; "Solomon was too much for her. He 
took her down a peg or two, didn't he? Guess she went home with 
a flea in her ear." 

" If all this means that she was humbler than when she came, then 
she was taken down a peg and did get a flea in her ear, as you say," 
remarked Grandpa, smiling; "but a little boy should hardly talk so 
about a queen." 

" Oh ! well, she's dead now, and she was a foreigner anyhow ; so 
it's all right." 

" Solomon was much pleased with her visit, and when she was about 
to leave they exchanged splendid presents and parted good friends. 
Solomon became richer and richer. .The Bible says he exceeded all 
the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom. Jesus speaks of 
Solomon's glory as if no other mortal ever was so grand. So David's 
son became the greatest among; king-s." 

"That was good," exclaimed Carrie, while Charley declared, "I'd 
just as leave be President as be Solomon ; but I'd want plenty of 
money and to make a big show and dazzle Queen Victoria and all 
the other queens who'd come to see me." At which speech the fam- 
ily laughed heartily; but Charley, not the least disconcerted, declared 
that not one of them should be members of the royal family when he 
should go to live in the White House. 



THE RIVAL KINGS. 245 



THE RIVAL KINGS; 

Or, ROUGH ROADS FOR ROYAL FEET. 



" A FTER a reign of forty years Solomon died, and his son, Re- 

/ \ hoboam, went to Shechem to be crowned in his stead." 
-*• -*- Grandpa began his next talk" with this statement. He then 
paused a moment, and Carrie asked : " Was Rehoboam as wise and 
great as Solomon ?" 

" No. His first act was a very foolish one, and it split his king- 
dom into two." 

" How did that happen ?" the children asked, with evident surprise. 

" Solomon had an enemy named Jeroboam. He was a great sol- 
dier and had been living in Egypt, where Solomon could not harm 
him. When the King died he returned at once, and at the head of 
a large delegation of people he came to Rehoboam and asked that 
the heavy taxes and immense labor which Solomon had required of 
them for his many improvements should be made less. Solomon's 
former counselors urged Rehoboam to promise this to the people ; 
but he was self-willed and stubborn, and said, in answer, that he 
would make things worse instead of better ; that his father had 
made their yoke heavy, but he would make it heavier; that his 
father had chastised them with whips, but he would chastise them 
with scorpions." 

" That was silly !" exclaimed Mary ; Charley adding his customary 
" That's so !" in a tone of genuine disgust. 

" The result was," continued Grandpa, " that ten tribes of Israel 

at once refused to serve Rehoboam and called Jeroboam to be their 

King. Rehoboam soon after sent one of his officers to collect 

money from these ten tribes, but they killed the man on the spot. 

16 



246 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



Rehoboam then hurried off to Jerusalem to raise an army; but the 
Lord's prophet there told him that the Lord had divided the king- 
dom and that it was useless to attempt its reunion." 

" How did they get along in this divided way?" asked Mary. 




" So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying,. 
What portion have we in David? . . . to your tents, O Israel." — I Kings xii. 16. 

"Badly enough," replied Grandpa. "Jeroboam set up two great 
idols — one at each end of his kingdom — and the people worshiped 
them. He made priests from the lowest of the people, offered sac- 
rifices and incense, which displeased God, and in every way became 
worse and worse all the time. But God has many means of punish- 



THE RIVAL KINGS. 247 



ing those who sin. Jeroboam had one lovely boy named Abijah. 
The boy became very sick, and in his sorrow the wicked father 
wanted help from God ; so he sent his wife to one of God's pro- 
phets. But he sent her in disguise and with a lie on her tongue, so 
that she should not be known. But God knew her and told the pro- 
phet. As soon as she reached the house of the man of God he 
called her by name and sent her home again, saying, When thy feet 
enter into the city the child shall die. He also told her that all her 
descendants should come to a miserable end." 

" That was awful !" exclaimed Carrie ; " and specially that her 
dear, good boy, Abijah, should die." 

" It was not awful for the boy, my dear. God loved him and took 
him from trouble and from violent death, which all his brothers met. 
Nor was it more awful for Jeroboam and his family than was their 
vile idolatry and sinfulness against God." 

" I know that," said Carrie, almost sobbing ; " but think of his poor 
mother hurrying home, only to find Abijah dead ! How sorry she 
must have been that she weflt at all !" 

" Yes, darling. Sin and sorrow always go together. But she had 
this comfort — that when her boy died, everybody loved him and all 
Israel mourned for him ; so they buried him lovingly and with many- 
tears." 

" And what became of Solomon's son, Rehoboam ?" asked Mary. 

" He and Jeroboam fought each other all their days. He finally 
became an idolater and did all manner of evil. But he, too, was 
punished. When he had reigned some five years the King of Egypt 
came, conquered him, and carried away all the immense treasures 
which Solomon had gathered. Rehoboam died after reigning seven- 
teen years. A few years later Jeroboam was killed in battle. So 
the rival Kings were called from earth. Their kingdoms moved on, 
their glory declining constantly and their experiences becoming 
rougher and darker all the time." 




DEATH OF THE PRINCE. 



MIRACULOUS FEEDING. 249 

MIRACULOUS FEEDING: 

Or, STRANGE SUPPLIES IN DIRE DISTRESS. 



" "T "T THAT next have you to tell us, Grandpa?" asked Carrie, 
\/\ / " I enjoyed last night's talk very much, but I cried my- 
* * self to sleep over the little Prince who died." 

" Well, darling, I'll tell you to-night about a little lad who died, but 
came to life again. That may make amends for the sad story of 
Abijah." 

" Thanks, Grandpa, but it's all mended now ; I was all right when 
I awoke this morning." 

" Some sixty years after Solomon died," began Grandpa, as he 
settled himself in his easy-chair, " there lived in Canaan a grand old 
prophet named Elijah. At that time there was a great famine in 
the land. Rain had not fallen for over three years. This penalty was 
because of the terrible wickedness of Ahab, King of Israel, and of 
his people. Everything was dried up and dead. But God took care 
of His prophet, and sent him to dwell in a wild place where a little brook 
flowed the whole year. His food was brought in a very strange man- 
ner by ravens, which usually eat anything and everything they can 
find." 

" The idea of ravens — black, ugly things that eat garbage — feed- 
ing a good man ! Why, I never heard of such a thing," was the rat- 
tling, rambling answer Mary put in at this point. 

" But they did it. Bread and flesh were brought him twice a day, 
till at last the brook dried up and Elijah could get no water. God 
then sent him to a little city called Zarephath, where a widow woman 
was to be prepared to supply him with food." 




SUPPLIED IN THE WILDERNESS. 




SUPPLIED IN THE CITY. 



252 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



"A widow woman !" exclaimed Carrie, with some surprise. "A 
rich widow, I suppose." 

" By no means a rich widow, but a very poor one. Indeed, he 
found her at the gate of the city gathering a few sticks with which 
to cook the last morsel of food she had, after which she expected 
that she and her little boy would starve to death. You may imagine 
she was surprised when a stout, noble-looking man came up and 
asked her for some water and bread. She declared that all she 
had was a handful of meal that was left in a barrel and a little 
oil in a bottle. But Elijah said, Fear not, but bring me food first ; 
God will not let your meal and oil fail until the famine is over. She 
believed his message and did as he asked, and she and her son and 
Elijah, too, had plenty to eat, for God continued to feed them, just 
as the prophet had said." 

" Well, those were strange ways of feeding people," said Mary. 
" It really don't seem true, does it, Grandpa?" 

"It is not stranger, my dear, if you but think of it, than to feed 
them by means of seed cast into the ground, where it is covered up 
and seemingly dies." 

"That's true, Grandpa, but we are so used to the seed that it 
seems all right." 

"While Elijah was staying at that widow's house," Grandpa re- 
sumed, " her little boy fell sick and died. The poor mother was in 
terrible distress ; but Elijah took the dead boy, carried him to his 
own bed, and there prayed over him. God heard that prayer and 
restored the boy's life, and then Elijah carried him sound and well 
to the mother, whose sorrow was all turned to joy." 

"Ah," said Carrie, "that's my little lad you promised to tell of. I 
hope he became a good man." 

" It was this same Elijah, wasn't it, Grandpa," asked Mary, " who 
called down fire from heaven and proved to Baal's prophets that his 
God was the true God ?" 

" And who went to heaven in a chariot of fire ?" said Charley. 



MIR A CUL O US FEEDING. 



253 



" The same," answered Grandpa. " His translation to heaven was 
an honor such as one other man had, and one only. We have 
talked of him. Who was he ?" 

"Enoch," responded all in chorus. 




"And the Lord heard the voice of Elijah ; and the soul of the child came into him again, and Hi 

revived."' — I Kings xvii, 22. 

" Yes, and if we too walk with God, though we may not ascend to 
heaven by horses and chariots of fire, yet we shall surely enter the 
same heavenly home and see the men who were not, because God 
took them." 

" I want to see those men," added Charley, as they separated. 



254 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

THE PLOWMAN'S APPOINTMENT: 

Or, CALLED TO A GREAT OFFICE. 



" S~^ RANDPA," began Carrie, " Elijah was such a wonderful 
I ._ man, they must have missed him sadly after God took 
X ^ 1 him." 

" Doubtless he was missed, but God had provided another great 
prophet to take his place. This was Elisha, whom Elijah found 
working at the plow, and on whom, at God's direction, Elijah threw 
his own mantle without saying a word." 

"What did he do that for?" asked Charley, who could see no spe- 
cial benefit in this disposal of Elijah's mantle. 

"That outer robe of Elijah's was an emblem of his authority as a 
prophet. When he threw it upon Elisha, it meant that Elisha was 
to succeed him. Elisha knew what it meant, so he left his plow and 
oxen, followed Elijah, and became his constant attendant and faithful 
servant, and finally saw him ascend in the chariot of fire." 

" Tell us about that, Grandpa, please. It is a lovely story !" ex- 
claimed Carrie. 

" Elisha remained constantly with Elijah, seeing and hearing much 
that fitted him for his future work. At last the time came when the 
Lord made known to them His intention to take Elijah to heaven. 
Then Elijah tested the earnestness and devotion of his servant by 
several times ursine him to leave him ; but Elisha would do no 
such thing. He stuck to his master, following him from place to 
place, and praying that a double portion of the holy and earnest 
spirit his master had possessed might descend upon himself. One 
day, as they walked on and talked together, suddenly a chariot and 




RIDICULINQ THE BALD-HEADED MAN. 



256 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

horses of fire appeared, and away Elijah was carried in an instant, 
Elisha seeing him ascend, and calling a parting message after him as 
Elijah's mantle fell and Elisha caught it and kept it as his own." 

" Why, I thought Elijah gave that to him in the field where Elisha. 
was plowing," interrupted Charley. 

" No, he threw it on him as a sort of prophecy of what was to come ~ 
but Elijah was not jet through with his own work as a prophet, so 
he kept the badge of office till he should need it no more." 

"His robe was like a soldier's uniform, wasn't it? Everybody 
who sees it, knows the man is a soldier," said Charley. 

"Just so ; while a soldier is on duty he wears his uniform ; so does- 
a policeman ; so did Elijah," answered Grandpa. 

"But after Elijah's ascension Elisha took his place, did he?" in- 
quired Carrie. 

" Yes, and filled it well. He told everywhere of the wonderful ascent 
Elijah had made, but as no one else had seen it, many of the people 
ridiculed his statement. Some said Elijah's dead body could be found 
among the mountains, and a party of fifty young men went out and 
searched three days, but no body could they find; and yet the people 
doubted. The very children began to make fun of Elisha for telling 
such a tale. He was a bald-headed man, and one clay a lot of chil- 
dren followed him along the road, calling, Go up, thou bald-head I 
Go up, thou bald-head ! Then Elisha turned, looked on them, in God's- 
name denounced their wickedness, and directly two bears rushed out 
of the woods upon that jeering crowd of children, killing and maim- 
ing no less than forty-two of them." 

" Well, that was pretty hard," exclaimed Mar}'. " They had no- 
right to make fun of a good man, especially for a thing he could not 
help, and which was not a serious defect anyhow ; but to kill forty- 
two children for doing it seems to me cruel." 

" So I think," said Carrie, and Charley, regardless of his grammar, 
shouted, " Me too !" 

" But you mistake, children dear," said Grandpa ; " it was not done 




THE MARVELOUS JAR OF OIL. 



2 8 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

from personal spite of Elisha's because they made fun of his bald 
head, nor was it because they ridiculed his baldness at all ; it was 
because they disbelieved and ridiculed what God had done for Elijah ; 
tauntingly calling on Elisha to go up, too." 

" Oh !" said Mary, with surprise, " they meant go up in a chariot 
of fire, as you say Elijah did." 

" Certainly, and that was where their sin was and why they suffered 
so terribly. God will not permit His acts and words to be treated 
with contempt." 

" I never understood that story before," said Mar}*. " Nor I," said 
the other children and their mother also. 

" Elisha did another remarkable thing," continued Grandpa. " The 
widow of a poor but very good man came to him one day in great 
distress because she and her two boys were about to be sold as slaves 
to pay an old debt." 

" Horrible !" exclaimed Carrie. " I'm grlad such barbarous things 
are not done now." 

"They were done then, and she was about to experience it to her 
sorrow. But Elisha asked what she had to sell. All she had was 
one pot of oil. Go borrow from your neighbors all the empty jars 
you can get, was Elisha's order. She and the boys did it, and bor- 
rowed a great lot of empty vessels of all styles and sizes. Then, as 
Elisha had ordered, they went into their house, shut the door, and 
poured oil from their one jar into one of the empty jars until it was 
full ; then they filled another and another, and so on until all were filled 
— the marvel being that their own small jar of oil did not get empty,, 
but the oil held out until all the others were filled. Then, as Elisha 
had ordered, they sold the entire lot of oil, paid the debt, and were a 
free and happy family once more." 

" Good for Elijah !" shouted Charley. 

" Not Elijah ; he was in heaven. Elisha did this," said Carrie. 

" Well, good for both of 'em, anyhow," persisted Charley, as the 
evening's chat ended. 



THE LITTLE CAPTIVE. 259 

' THE LITTLE CAPTIVE; 

Or, WHAT A SERVING MAID MAY DO. 



" >^~> RANDPA, tell us a girl's story to-night, please," asked Car- 
-_. rie, as the company gathered again in the sitting-room. 

^ — ^ " All right, my child ; it shall be about a little servant girl. 
We do not know her name, but she had once lived near Elisha and 
knew of his wonderful works. She then was captured and became 
a slave and lived in Damascus, a great, splendid city, many miles 
from her former home in Samaria. Her master was a great general, 
who was much beloved by his King, but alas ! he had a terrible dis- 
ease called leprosy, for which there was no cure. One day this little 
girl was waiting on her mistress, who was very sad because her hus- 
band was so diseased. The little girl, full of sympathy, said to her 
at last, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Sama- 
ria, for he would cure his. leprosy ! They were not long in acting on 
this hint. Off to Samaria, which is part of Canaan, went the great 
Naaman, with horses, chariots, attendants, robes, money, letters from 
the King, and everything else that could promote his cause." 

" That was a big parade for a little girl to start," remarked Charley. 

" Yes, and it had big results," added Grandpa. " It scared the 
King of Samaria badly, for he thought it meant war. But Elisha sent 
word that the King need not worry, and for Naaman to come to his 
house. Naaman went, but when there he became terribly angry, for 
Elisha did not so much as come to the door to speak with him. He 
simply sent out word for Naaman to go and wash in Jordan seven 
times. Up at Damascus were some of the most beautiful rivers of 
the world. Naaman had used their waters without good effect, and 



260 



GkANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



must he now go and wash in a muddy stream such as the Jordan ? 
He was angry. He turned and went away in a terrible rage, and 
Elisha did not trouble himself about it, but just let him gb." 




THE JORDAN AND ITS SURROUNDINGS ABOVE JERICHO. 

" Ha, ha," laughed Charley; " he must have been mad. He thought 
he was somebody, but Elisha didn't care a button for him, did he ?" 

"No; but as Naaman jogged homeward in his chariot he cooled 
off, and when he came to the Jordan, he concluded to try a bath any- 
how. Down he went and in he plunged. Seven times he dipped in 



THE LITTLE CAPTIVE. 



261 



the muddy water, and then lo ! his rough, scaly, reddened, itching 
skin became soft, smooth, and pure as that of a baby." 




GEHAZI SUCCESSOR TO NAAMAN. 



"He was glad, I'm sure," was the reply of both girls; but Char- 
ity's cry was, " Good for the Jordan ! Is there any skating there ?" 
17 



262 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Skating there !" exclaimed Mary. " Charley Reed, are you 
crazy? Why, it's so warm there that the Jordan is more likely to 
boil than to freeze. Didn't you know that?" 

"Oh! yes, and I'm glad you know, too. Please go on, Grandpa." 

" No sooner was Naaman cured than he hurried back to reward 
Elisha. Not a cent would Elisha take ; but he had a servant named 
Gehazi, who heard the conversation and resolved not to let Naaman 
off so cheaply. When Naaman started again, this fellow ran after 
him, and by means of a cunning lie got from him a splendid gift, 
which he stowed away in his own room and went in to Elisha look- 
ing innocent as a lamb. But Elisha cornered him in his fraud and 
said, The leprosy of Naaman cleave unto thee. In an instant Gehazi 
was covered with leprosy, and was never cured." 

" That was awful. But he was certainly very wicked," said Mary. 

" But what, think you, was the sin of Gehazi ?" asked Grandpa. 

" Lying," answered Charley. " He hadn't heard of the boy who 
could not tell a lie." 

"Stealing," answered Carrie. 

" Love of money," said Mary. " That made him lie and steal." 

"Yes; Paul says the love of money is the root of all evil, and we 
see how big a crop of evil that root bore to Gehazi. On the other 
hand, we see the crop of blessings that came from the honest words 
of the little captive." 

"He got more than he wanted, didn't he, Grandpa? He got the 
money and the leprosy to boot," was the parting comment of Charley 
as, with hands in his pockets as if fumbling his own wealth, he pre- 
pared to leave for the night. 

" Yes, and his children and his children's children got more than 
they wanted, too, for Elisha said, The leprosy of Naaman shall cleave 
to thee and to thy seed forever. So Gehazi could not tell the amount 
of ill his one sin brought." 

" Nor the little girl the amount of good she brought," said Mrs. 
Reed, as she kissed her own girls good-night. 



THE MYSTERIOUS PANIC. 263 

'THE MYSTERIOUS PANIC; 

Or, ABUNDANCE FOR STARVATION. 



" A ¥ ^ELL us another story about Elisha," was the unanimous de- 
mand of the children when they met Grandpa again ; so he 
-*- began as follows: 

" Near the close of Elisha's life he was in the city of Samaria. The 
Syrian army had besieged it, and it was shut up so closely that no 
one could go out or come in. Food soon became very scarce, so 
that all kinds of animals were eaten for food, and even human flesh 
was so used. When everything was at its worst, Elisha quietly told 
the people that on the next day food would be abundant. Nothing 
was less probable. The great army around the city meant to starve 
the people into surrender. So unlikely was Elisha's prophecy that 
the people ridiculed his statement, and one great man of the city de- 
clared that this could not be even if the Lord should open windows 
in heaven." 

" Pretty badly off if that could not relieve them," commented Mary. 
" But that was exaggeration. " 

" They were badly off — so badly, indeed, that mothers killed, 
cooked and ate their own babes to escape starvation." 

"Horrible!" exclaimed Carrie. 

"It was horrible indeed," answered Grandpa ; "and you can easily 
imagine something of the sufferings that filled the city. All were 
hungry and emaciated for want of food until strength was gone and 
they looked like living skeletons. Fever and delirium seized many 
of them. Such as were able to move prowled about like hungry 
hyenas seeking a morsel to eat. Here and there mothers, half- 



264 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

crazed with hunger, destroyed their children to use their flesh for 
food. So horrors abounded on every side." 

" Don't tell us any more about that," said Carrie, with a shudder. 
" I can't stand such terrible things. How did they get out of this 
misery ?" 

"Outside the city gates," resumed Grandpa, without directly an- 
swering Carrie, " were four lepers. They were not allowed inside 
lest they should give their disease to others. There those poor fel- 
lows were between the closed gates and the hostile army. They 
were almost starved, and did not know what to do. After talking it 
over, they determined to go into the Syrian's camp and surrender 
themselves. Perhaps they would be fed ; perhaps they would be 
killed ; but to stay where they were was to die sure. They decided 
to go. Down the hill they went, poor, miserable, diseased, beggarly 
fellows that they were; but as they came near the camp, they saw 
not a man. Into the camp they entered; from tent to tent they 
passed. There were horses, arms, food, silver, gold, garments, 
everything belonging to a well-filled camp, but not a man in sight. 
Every soul had fled." 

" Why, Grandpa, what was the matter? Where were the soldiers?" 
asked Carrie, in surprise. 

" Gone to breakfast," said Charley, with well-assumed seriousness. 
"The bell had just rungr" 

" Let Mary read the reason from II Kings vii, 6, 7." 

Mary did as was suceested, and read these words : " For the Lord 
had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots and a 
noise of horses, even the noise o( a great host ; and they said one to 
another, Lo! the Kinof of Israel hath hired against us the Kin^s of the 
Hittites and the Kings of the Egyptians to come upon us. Where- 
fore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents and their 
horses and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for theif 
life." 

"Well! well !" shouted Carrie in surprise, while Charley opened 




IN SIGHT OF THE DESERTED CAMP. 



266 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



his eyes wider than usual and declared they were a set of chicken- 
hearted boys to be scared at nothing; but Grandpa reminded him 
that the Lord, who was no trivial foe, had scared them, and then 
went on with the story. 

"The first thought of the four lepers was to take for themselves 
all the treasures they could hide or carry away. But a better, nobler 
thought then came; away they ran to the people who had shut them 
out to starve and told the good tidings of what had happened Then 
the gates were opened, out rushed the hungry people, and through 
the deserted camp they swarmed. There was enough food and 
plenty to spare, besides an abundance of other treasures the Syrians 

i f n C ! 1,S Way EHsha ' S P r °P hec >' was fulfilled, impossible 
taough its fulfillment had seemed on the preceding day." 

'•Weren't they afraid to open the gates and "rush out ?" asked 
Mary "The Syrians might have been watching in ambush for 
them. 

- They guarded against that danger. It was early evening when 
the lepers found that the camp was deserted. When they came 
back to the city's gate and told those who kept it, it was late in the 
evening The news was so important that it was carried to the 
King, who ordered spies to go out and learn the facts. These men 
found that the Syrians had indeed fled to the Jordan and across it 
I hen they came back, in the morning of the next day, and told the 
good news, after which the gates were thrown open and every man 
helped himself, as I told you." 

"I guess that great man felt flat enough when he saw Elisha's 
Avords come true." 

"Yes, Charley, especially as in the rush of the people he fell flat- 
and was trampled to death under their feet." 

" Oh ! Grandpa, is that so ?" 

" Yes, Charley, it was even so. Elisha said to him that he should 
see the plenty, but should not eat of it. So it happened, for the 
people trod upon him in the gate, and he died." 



THR O WN FR OM THE WIND O W. 267 

THROWN FROM THE WINDOW; 

Or, A WICKED QUEEN'S FEARFUL END. 



S 



HALL I tell you about a great Queen to-night ?" asked 
Grandpa Goodwin, as his little audience, enlarged by a few 

^ — * of their friends, gathered about him. 

" Yes, yes, yes," came in from all sides. 

" By birth "she was a heathen princess; she worshiped idols and 
served them with all her heart. Her father was Kino- of Sidon, a 
famous city on the Mediterranean Sea." 

" What was her name ?" asked Charley. 

" Her name was Jezebel, the same as our Isabel or Isabella. She 
became "the wife of Ahab, the worst of all Israel's kings, and she was 
his inspiration in all his evil ; she planned most of it and urged him 
to all of it. In Elijah's time she murdered all the Lord's prophets 
she could find, while at her own expense she kept no less than four 
hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, the false god, and four hundred 
of Astarte, the false goddess. By these means she so strengthened 
idol-worship that those who served the true God were few and far 
between. Indeed, Elijah did not know a- man beyond himself who 
was faithful to God. The Lord, however, told him there were seven 
thousand in the land who had not worshiped Baal. But they were 
scattered and hidden away from the cruelties of Jezebel. When 
Elijah roused the people by calling fire from heaven, so that it slew 
the prophets of Baal, then Jezebel was furious and swore that Elijah's 
life should be taken within twenty-four hours. But the Lord pro- 
tected him and she was disappointed." 

" She ought to have been locked up !" declared Charley, vehem- 



268 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 




ently. "Hanging wouldn't 
have been bad enough fur 
her. And she a woman 
too!" 

"You're right, Charley!" 
exclaimed Carrie, warmly. 
"It's bad enough for any- 
body to be so wicked, and 
far worse for a woman. But 
what became of her, Grand- 
pa ?" 

" She did not become bet- 
ter, I am sorry to saw One 
of her later exploits will show 
of what she was capable in 
the way of wickedness. Her 
husband was anxious to o- e t 
a vineyard belonging to one 
Naboth, who refused to sell 
it, which made Ahab quite 
unhappy. For this she spoke 
most contemptuously to her 
husband and said, I will give 
thee the vineyard of Naboth. 
So she ordered the chief men 
of Naboth's neighborhood to 
put him on trial for blas- 
phemy; to bring. false wit- 
nesses against him ; to con- 
vict him on the spot, and to 
stone him to death. It was 
done. They dared not dis- " 
obey her. Then she sent 



THR O WN FR OM THE WIND O W. 269 

Ahab to take the vineyard for himself. Soon after this Ahab was 
slain in battle, but she lived on, opposing the Lord's servants." 

'• What a horrible woman she must have been !" exclaimed Carrie. 

" She was, and her name is used in the Bible for all that is base 
and godless. But for Naboth's murder God -said by Elijah that the 
dogs should eat the flesh of Jezebel. She was at the city of Jezreel, in 
the palace where as Queen-mother her influence was unlimited, when 
a wild, reckless hero named Jehu came on his mission of blotting out 
the family of Ahab. Jezebel knew that her hour had then come, and 
she nerved herself to meet her fate. She dressed her hair, painted 
her face, and took position at a lofty window over the entrance." 

" Painted her face !" exclaimed both the girls. " Why in the world 
did she do that?" 

"Just why she did it cannot be said positively. Women generally 
did this in those days by touching around the eyes with dark paint 
so as to make the eyes look larger and brighter. She may have 
meant to increase her imposing appearance, so possibly to impress 
Jehu favorably and soften his heart ; or she may have meant to die 
as a queen, in royal robes and with the fullest display." 

" How did her little scheme succeed ?" inquired Mary. 

" Directly the chariot of Jehu came rolling up to the gate, and she 
called to him with a reproachful question. Surprised to see her, the 
evil spirit of all the evil of Ahab's reign, he called back, asking who 
was on his side. Immediately two or three servants looked out of 
the window, as if to say, We are. Throw her down, cried Jehu. 
Down they did throw her, headlong upon the pavement below, her 
blood being dashed against the wall and upon the horses, which were 
then driven over her body as the conquerors drove into the palace- 
grounds. Then came the dogs, always numerous in those cities of 
the far East, and tore to shreds the remains of this proud Queen." 

" That was awful !" exclaimed all the children at once. 

" When I become Queen," said Mary, with a laugh, " I'll pattern 
after some other queen, not after Jezebel." 



270 GRAXDI'A G O 0£> IY/N'S S2 ORJES. 



GOOD AND BEAUTIFUL; 

Or, A GODLY QUEEN'S NOBLE ACT. 



AFTER you went to bed last night," began Mrs. Reed, "I told 
Grandpa I was afraid you would all have bad dreams, that 
was so terrible a story about Jezebel ! But to-night we are 
to offset last night by the story of another Queen who was both <r od 
and beautiful." 

The children all declared they had no bad dreams, though Carrie 
said that two or three times she fancied herself thrown out°of a win- 
dow. But all agreed they were glad to have learned about the 
fearful end of that bad woman, and were now ready to hear about 
one who was better. 

"And who is this better Queen, my dears?" was Grandpa's open- 
ing question, to which Charley, for want of a better answer, responded. 
Queen Victoria ; but Mary came to the rescue, declaring her belief 
that Esther was the one. 

"Yes, Esther is the one of whom I want to tell you. She was 
young, beautiful, and good. With many other Jews, she was a cap- 
tive in Persia, but her beauty brought her to the notice of the Kino-, 
Ahasuerus, and he made her Queen. He was a selfish, brutal man,' 
killing people or honoring people as he pleased. Esther was an 
orphan ; her uncle, Mordecai, had brought her up. He was a proud, 
stern old man, who always did what was right, and so displeased 
many persons, among them Hainan, the ruler next to the King. 
This man began to plan, therefore, not only to kill Mordecai, but all 
his kindred too. He soon persuaded the King to order the general 
slaughter of the Jews, and — " 




PREPARING THE DOCUMENTS. 



272 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

"Why, could he do such a thing for no cause at all?" exclaimed 
Mary. " Kings can't do so now, can they, Grandpa ?" 

" Not in civilized governments ; but there arc still many rulers in 
half-civilized and barbarous nations who do just as they please in 
these things. Printing was not known then, nor telegraphs and tel- 
ephones — so the King's scribes, or writers, were put to work, and 
orders were sent through all the Persian dominions commanding that 
on a certain day all Jews, young or old, male or female, should be 
killed." 

" Horrible !" cried Mary; "I shall have bad dreams over this story, 
I'm sure." 

" Maybe not; wait for the end and see. Of course, the Jews were 
in distress, but Haman was in great glee and had a jolly time with 
the King, drinking wine and talking over this great decision. Esther 
did not know what had happened till she saw Mordecai mourning; 
then she learned from him, and saw that her life, too, was in peril." 

" Why didn't she go to the King at once and tell him just how it 
was ?" asked Carrie, with surprise. 

" Because even she, the King's wife, did not dare go into his pres- 
ence except he sent for her. If she should do so and he pleased to 
reach out his sceptre toward her, it would be all right; but if he hap- 
pened to be sulky and did not reach out the sceptre, the guards would 
hurry her off to instant death." 

" Hoorah!" came from Charley at this point. " That's a pretty way 
for a man to serve his wife. Ha, ha! suppose papa would serve you 
so, mamma. The police would get him quick, wouldn't they?" So 
the boyishness subsided and Grandpa went on. 

'- Esther sent word for all the Jews to join her in fasting and prayer 
for three days; then she would go in to the King, which was contrary 
to law, but, said she, if I perish, I perish. The people did pray ; she 
went in to the King ; he held out the sceptre ; she touched it, as was 
the proper thing to do ; he asked what he could do to please her, 
saying she should have it if it cost half his kingdom. She told of Ha- 




NOT HUNG, BUT HONORED. 



^ GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



man , plot, and begged the lives of herself and her people. So an..ry 
at Hainan did the King become that he ordered him to be hanSd 
on the very gallows Haman had built for Mordecai. lC„ Eslet 
begged theKmgto recall his order for the death of her people He 
did .t, and through her nob.e act her people lived in peace a'nd'pros! 

"And what became of the old uncle?" asked Carrie 
"Why, before Haman was exposed and hanged, the King discov 
ered how true Mordecai had been to a former King .d^h thL" 
serv.ee had never been rewarded. So he had Mofdecai mount d 
on his own horse, led through the streets by Haman, and all 
shown hnn on the way Then, when Haman's guilt was exposed 
Mordecai was put into his place next the King, and all the people 
were glad, for the right had triumphed. The "good man had" been 
exalted, the bad man had been punished " 

"That's the Queen I'll copy," said Mary. "I'll make the people 
glad when I reign over them." l 

"There is another fact that may be of interest to you. There is 
to this day a great festival kept by all jews and called the feast of 
Punm. It was instituted by Mordecai, at Esther's suggestion, in 
honor of the deliverance of the Jews from Haman's vile plot In 
celebrating this feast in Jewish synagogues the entire book of Esther 
is read. Whenever the name of Mordecai is mentioned, all of the 
congregation exclaim, Blessed be Mordecai! When Haman's name 
is mentioned, they all exclaim, May his name perish ! The remain- 
der of the feast-day is spent in social festivity and merriment." 

"I don't wonder there is rejoicing in memory of that deliverance 
It was really wonderful," said Carrie. 



SATAN LET LO OSE. 275 



SATAN LET LOOSE; 

Or, SUFFERING WITHOUT SINNING. 



" " AST night," Grandpa began, "we saw sorrow turned to joy 
for the poor captive Jews in Persia. I will now tell you of 

-*■ — ' another case which occurred many years before and in which 
sorrow was turned to joy." 

" Whose case is this ?" asked Mary, 

" It is Job's. He was a godly man, who probably lived about the 
time of Abraham. He was very rich, and had a large family of du- 
tiful children. One day there came a series of calamities by which 
all his children were killed and most of his property was swept 
away." 

" Why, how did all this happen ?" asked Mary. 

"A whirlwind struck the house where his children were feasting 
together, and they were buried in the ruins. The same storm de- 
stroyed a large portion of his flocks and many of his servants who 
were tending them. In the midst of this panic a band of robbers fell 
upon Job's herds in another place and drove them off. In this way 
blow after blow fell on Job suddenly and fearfully, yet he did not 
complain, but humbled himself before God, saying in his sorrow, The 
Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away ; blessed be the name of 
the Lord !" 

" I don't see why the Lord permits men who are so good to suffer, 
anyway," said Mary, thoughtfully. " Why is it, Grandpa ? Can you 
explain it?" 

" His reasons are not always clear. In this case the story is told 
in full, and we know why it happened. Satan had persisted that 



SA TAN LET LO OSE. 277 



the only reason for Job's piety was his prosperity, and that if God 
would afflict him he would curse God instead of praising Him. To 
prove how false this was God gave Satan permission to do any harm 
he pleased to Job, only forbidding him to touch Job himself. Satan 
used his permission to its fullest extent and in the terrific way of 
which I told you." 

"Satan was just turned loose on him that time, wasn't he?" asked 
Charley. 

" But didn't get Job to sin, did he ?" asked Mary. 

" No, Mary. The Bible says that in all this Job sinned not, nor 
charged God foolishly." 

" Satan must have felt a good deal ashamed of himself after that," 
said Charley. 

" But he did not," answered Grandpa. " He explained his failure 
by saying, All that a man hath will he give for his life. So he urged 
God to put forth His hand and touch Job's flesh ; then he affirmed 
Job would certainly curse Him to His face." 

"The vile old mischief-maker!" exclaimed Mary; "how could he 
say such hateful things ?" 

"Sure enough," resumed Grandpa; "but he did say them, and 
God was willing to test Job still further, so He permitted Satan to 
cover him with terrible boils. So fearful was his suffering; that 
Job threw himself down among the ashes, as persons in deep afflic- 
tion then were accustomed to do. To make matters worse, his wife 
turned against him, urging- him to curse God and die. But in all 
this Job said no sinful or foolish word. He mourned, of course, but 
he did not sin." 

"'And is this the reason for our afflictions, Grandpa, that God may 
test us?" asked Mary. 

" Much of the affliction of the rio-hteous is sent to show others how 
God can comfort and keep His people." 

"Was that why Uncle Ben suffered so much?" asked Carrie. 
" He was sick so long, and yet he always was so happy." 
18 



273 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" I have no doubt God meant to show by Uncle Ben, as He did by 
Job, how much a child of His could suffer and yet be happy. But it 
is not easy to understand why the good suffer. Job had three very 
wise and excellent friends who came to see him in his distress. They 
could not understand, why he should be so afflicted unless while lie 
seemed so good he was really a hypocrite practicing secret sins. 
This Job denied most earnestly. He was sure God had other rea- 
sons, though what they were was not clear to him." 

"Why, Grandpa, the talk between Job and these friends makes up 
most of the book of Job, don't it?" said Mary, adding in explanation, 
" I was looking over Job a few days ago and noticed it was a long 
conversation or argument." 

"Yes, the discussion of Job and his friends is given there in full. 
They did not make the darkness much clearer — so another friend 
came at last, a younger man, but one who was very wise, and he did 
get nearer the truth than the others. But he, too, was somewhat in 
error — so God spoke, and by Him the truth was made plain and all 
the men were set right." 

" That was good. If God only helps us out of our troubles we are 
sure to get out on the right side." 

"True, Mary. Job came out on the right side, and as he did so, 
his final words to the Lord were these : I know that Thou canst do 
everything, and that no thought can be withholden from Thee. Who 
is He that hideth counsel without knowledge"? therefore have I ut- 
tered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I 
knew not. Hear, I beseech Thee, and I will speak : I will demand 
of Thee, and declare Thou unto me. I have heard of Thee by the 
hearing of the ear; but now mine eye seeth Thee: wherefore I 
abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes." 

"What happened after all this?" 

" After all this, Charley, God blessed Job more than ever before. 
His kindred and his old acquaintances all came to him with rich 
presents. His cattle increased abundantly. Seven sons and three 



SA TAN LET LO OSE. 



279 



daughters were given him, which was just the number that he had 
before his calamity came. So the Lord blessed the latter end of 
Job more than his beginning." 

''Yes, Grandpa; but he must have become so old and broken down 
that he could not enjoy his prosperity," said Carrie. 




" Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all they that had be e7i of his 

acquaintance before?' — Job xlii, 1 1. 

" Not so, darling. He lived at a time when men's lives were much 
longer than now, so that even after his sufferings he lived one hun- 
dred and forty years, seeing four generations of his descendants. 
Then he died, an old man, but full of honors as he was of years." 



28( > GRANDPA GOOD WIN* S STORIES. 



UNCOMFORTABLE QUARTERS ; 

Or, THE RUNAWAY BROUGHT BACK. 



GRANDPA," 
I want you 
you tell a fe 



began Charley, " isn't it most time for Jonah? 
to tell me about him. I can understand what 
fellow." 

"Well, yes, it is about time for him," answered Grandpa. "In a 
few days I am to leave home for a little while, so we can have just 
a few more talks. Charley has chosen Jonah as his hero; who does 
Mary choose?" 

" Daniel," answered she in an instant; and as Grandpa's eye turned 
to Carrie for her choice, she said, " More Daniel." 

"So let it be," added Grandpa. "Jonah and Daniel are our sub- 
jects. ^ You can read the book of Jonah readily, and Daniel also. 
Do this, and be prepared to ask questions and understand answers." 

"But tell us about Jonah now, please, Grandpa," urged Charley. 
" I just want to see the old chap bounce overboard and slide down 
that whale's throat." 

"You seem to have his history well in mind, Charley; but I may 
clear up some points. Jonah was a prophet, a sort of preacher, and 
God told him to go to Nineveh, a great city of the far East, and there 
to preach. Jonah did not like this appointment, so he slipped off in 
the other direction and took passage on a ship going to the far West, 
on the Mediterranean Sea. Jonah thought, possibly, that he had 
given God the slip, but he was wofully in error there." 

" Ha, ha !" roared Charley. " He was a great old preacher. Why 
we boys wouldn't have him for a Sunday-school teacher if he didn't 
know better than that— we wouldn't. We'd bounce him quick." 



UNCOMFOR TABLE QUAE. TERS. 



281 



"The ship was soon on her way with Jonah as a first-class passen- 
ger, and thinking he had done a cute thing. But directly a terrific 
storm arose. The sailors could not manage their poor, cranky vessel. 
She was about to upset or go to pieces. It seemed as if every one 
on board would surely go to the bottom. Every man of them then 




"So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea; and the sea ceased from her raging."-— 

Jonah i, 15. 

began to pray, some to one heathen god and some to another. Things 
got worse. They were terribly frightened. But Jonah was not on 
deck. He was down in his bunk asleep. Down goes the captain 
and wakes him, that he, too, may pray. He came on deck, and just 
then some one proposed that they cast lots to see on whose account 
this storm had been sent. It was done on the instant, and Jonah was, 
the one on whom it fell." 



282 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Bad luck to him," muttered Charley, as though himself a sufferer 
by the storm. 

"Jonah owned up that he was trying to run away from his God, 
and he himself proposed that they pitch him overboard, and so save 
themselves. They hated to do this, but there was no help for it. 
The storm grew worse; the danger became greater every moment. 
Then, after a brief prayer to Jonah's God, they threw him into the 
sea. He was lost to their sight in an instant, and then the storm 
was over." 

" Dear me !" exclaimed Carrie. " Poor Jonah overboard and the 
others all safe." 

"But he, too, was safe," answered Grandpa. "While the storm 
was raging God was guiding a great sea- monster up close to the 
little ship. The Bible says God prepared this great fish ; that is, he 
had it there all ready to swallow Jonah, and to dive deep, so that 
neither man nor fish were seen by any on the ship." 

"Was it a whale that swallowed him?" asked Mar}'. 

"Our English New Testament calls it a whale, but the original 
word for it in the Scriptures means any great fish or sea-monster, 
whether whale, shark, or some othej. Whales are not found in 
the Mediterranean Sea ; they belong to colder waters at the far 
North. But the preparation which God made of that fish may have 
been simply the leading of it into those unusual waters." 

" But could Jonah have lived inside of a whale for three days ?" 
inquired Carrie. 

"Yes; the head of the right whale is an immense, roomy space. 
From the top of this space great flakes of whalebone hang, from the 
edges of which long, threadlike fibers extend in great abundance. 
Old whalers say that a boat's crew could lodge in the head of a right 
whale." 

"But how could Jonah live there so long?" insisted Carrie. 

"That's what I want to know, too," urged Charley. "There's 
too much fun poked at Jonah. I want to know about it." . 



UNCOMFORTABLE QUARTERS. 283 

" That is what I am getting at," answered Grandpa, smiling at the 
eagerness of his little hearers. " The right whale has a very small 
throat or gullet. Jonah could not have passed it and entered the 
stomach of the fish, but he could live among those pendant flakes of 
whalebone. As the fish opened its mouth to skim its food off the sur- 
face of the sea, Jo'nah would have been tumbled back into the great 
mouth along with water, sea- weed, small fishes, and other material. 
Then the water would be forced from the mouth by the animal and the 
small food would be drawn through the gullet and into the stomach. 
Jonah's quarters during these processes would be warm, wet, dark, 
and generally uncomfortable, but that he could live there for three 
days, and that, too, without the help of a miracle, no old whaler 
doubts." 

" Well, I never heard that explanation before," said Mrs. Reed, the 
children adding, " Nor I, nor I, nor I." 

" I think Jonah refers to the threadlike edges of the flakes of whale- 
bone when, after his rescue, he says, The weeds were wrapped about 
my head." 

" But how about his getting out ?" asked Charley, as if in some 
doubt. 

" Nothing more natural," answered Grandpa. " The whale would 
soon discover that he had more in his mouth than he could swallow, 
and he would very soon sicken under it. In this condition he would 
naturally run himself ashore ; the opportunity for Jonah to get out 
would soon arrive, and he would not be slow to improve it. So the 
runaway was brought back to land, and was quite willing to obey 
God." 

" Ha, ha, ha !" laughed Charley ; that's the best yet. I've known 
many a fellow to catch a fish, but Jonah is the first one I ever knew 
that a fish caught." 

" And many a one has swallowed a fish, but this is one of the few 
a fish swallowed," added Carrie, with a laugh. 



284 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



THE DISAPPOINTED PREACHER; 

Or, PROPHECY NOT FULFILLED. 



WE were to talk about Daniel to-night, but I want more 
Jonah," said Charley. " He was such an odd fish, I 
want to know more about him." 
"All right," answered Grandpa. "Just where the whale landed 
him is not told us, but probably it was not far from his startino- po int 
Jonahs zeal for running away from God was somewhat dampened 
and he was ready to do whatever God wished. God had no new 
command for him nor any change of the old. The' order was Go 
to Nineveh and preach what I shall tell thee. So Jonah arose 'and 
went." 

"Where was Nineveh?" asked Carrie. 

"Some four hundred miles to the east of the Mediterranean across 
a wide desert, and on the banks of the Tigris River. It was the 
capital of the Assyrian Empire, and was noted for its wealth and its 
wickedness. From its ruins fragments have been dug in our dav« 
which show how great and grand its palaces were. By comparing 
these pieces one with another very clear ideas of those palaces can 
be formed, and this is called restoring them." 

" What was Jonah to preach there ?" asked Mary. 

"His message was, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be over- 
thrown." 

"Why, what had Nineveh done that it was to be overthrown ?" 
"It had been very wicked, Carrie, so God decided to destroy it 
But as Jonah went through the city with his fearful warning, the 
people began to weep and to mourn before God. They also pro- 



THE DISAPPOINTED PREACHER. 



285 



claimed a solemn fast, during which neither men nor beasts tasted 
food or drink. With this deep humility God was well pleased, and 
pardoned them." 

" And so He did not destroy Nineveh, after all ?" 

" No, Mary. God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, 




" And Jonah began to enter into the city . . . and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and 
Nineveh shall be overthrown." — Jonah iii, 4. 

but prefers that they repent and live. He was glad they repented, 
and was Mad to let them live." 

" And what was Jonah doing all this while ?" asked Charley. 

" When Jonah saw their repentance and knew God forgave them, 
he became very angry. He had declared God would destroy them 
in forty days, but God had concluded not to do it, so Jonah was dis- 



286 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



appointed because his warning was not realized. He said that he 
knew God would act just this way, and for this reason he tried to 
run off and not ^o to Nineveh at all." 

" Why, I am amazed at him," said Mary. " Did he really prefer 
the people should be destroyed ?" 

" So it seems. But God taught him a lesson. He went out of 
the city and fixed up a tent in which to stay. The place was warm 
and uncomfortable, but Jonah did not want to stay in the city, where, 
he imagined, everybody was sneering at him as a false prophet. 
While he lodged in his booth outside the city, God made a vine 
spring up over it which shaded it nicely and made it far more pleas- 
ant. Jonah was very glad to have this favor from God; he thought 
it splendid to be taken care of in this way. But a worm came 
directly, gnawed his vine at the root, and lo ! it died. Then came a 
very hot day, with a furious, parching wind, and Jonah was in despair ; 
he wanted to die at once. The moment his favor from God was 
gone he howled with distress. Then God talked with him and 
showed how selfish he was ; he had no concern at all for the thou- 
sands of Nineveh, but preferred that they should perish, and was 
bitterly angry because they were spared. For himself, however, he 
wanted every comfort, and was in a towering passion because a vine 
that sheltered him had died." 

"Well, well!" exclaimed Carrie. "That was selfish! And he a 
prophet, too. I expected better things of such men." 

" He was a prophet, darling, not because he was a perfect man, 
but simply because God chose to give him a message which he was 
to speak. That is the idea of a prophet. A false prophet may 
falsely claim to be sent of God or may tell his message falsely. A 
true prophet is one whom God sends and who tells truly what God 
says. That Jonah did; but in other respects he was an ignorant and 
very imperfect man." 

"What became of Nineveh?" asked Charley. 

" It was spared in the time of Jonah ; but some years later — pos- 



THE DISAPPOINTED PREACHER. 



287 



sibly a hundred or more — it was totally destroyed. Its great walls 
and palaces and towers were battered down so completely that for 
centuries the site of the city was not so much as known. In 1820 a 
Mr. Rich began to examine the heaps of rubbish near the city of 
Mosul, on the Tigris. He found many objects of interest, and other 
explorers joined in the search. One named Botta went to work in 




PALACE OF SARGON AT NINEVEH— AS RESTORED. 

1843 an d made most valuable discoveries. A little later came Lay- 
ard, who exceeded them all in the extent of his searches and the 
knowledge of them which he gave the world. Other men have done 
a vast amount of work in digging treasures from these ruins." 

" I'd like to go there next summer. I'd dig up a lot of palaces 
and fine things — I would." 



288 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

FOUR NOBLE BOYS; 

Or, RIGHT BETTER THAN ROYALTY. 



DANIEL is the man to-night," said Mary, as the family assem- 
bled again. 
" Let us say the boy to-night," replied Grandpa, " for 1 
want to tell of him and his boy associates. They say, you know, As 
the twig is bent, the tree's inclined. I want to show you how this 
cwig bent." 

" That's good !" exclaimed Mary. " We shall know Daniel all the 
way from boyhood up." 

" Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon,- had conquered Jerusalem and 
taken a large number of Jews back to his dominions as slaves. By 
and by he thought it would help him in ruling the Jews if he should 
take some of their lads and train them up to become his assistants. 
So he ordered that four of the most promising Jewish boys be picked 
out for this honor, and the first of these was Daniel." 

"Who were the others ?" inquired Charley. "There must have 
been a scramble among the boys to get that chance." 

"I suppose there was a scramble, as you call it, Charley. It was 
as when our Congressmen offer an appointment at West Point or 
Annapolis to the best boy in the public- schools. Many try hard for 
the chance, though one only gets the place ; so here many tried, I 
doubt not, but four only were chosen." 

"And who were the other three ?" asked Charley again. 

"Their names were Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego." 

" O ho ! they were the fiery furnace boys !" exclaimed Mary. 

"The same. These four boys were taken to the King's palace 




THE YOUNG TEETOTALERS. 



290 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES 



and were taught all the elegance and learning of the day. They 
were to have schooling and board, such as fitted princes of that land, 
for three years, and then they were to begin their royal service. But 
these four Hebrew boys did not want to use the rich food and the 
wine sent them by the King. When the man who had charge of 
them urged them to use what the King had ordered, they refused, 
and asked for plain food such as their own captive kinsmen were 
compelled to use." 

" What harm could good victuals do them ?" asked Carrie. 
"But were they good victuals?" asked Grandpa. "Wine is a 
mocker, you know — so they preferred cold water. Many kinds of 
food were forbidden the Jews by their law. By eating what the heathen 
King sent, these boys would almost certainly break the law, so they 
preferred a simple vegetable diet. It was not a mere whim, nor a 
piece of contrariness ; it was a clear case of conscience with them, 
and God honored it." 

" How did God honor it?" asked Carrie. 

" Well, the man in charge of them was afraid such plain food would 
make them look poor and sick, but he gave them a ten days' trial. 
At the end of this time their countenances were fairer and their flesh 
was fatter than all the youthful Princes of Babylon who ate the Kino-'s 
provision. So God honored them with good health and good looks." 
"But did this hold out?" inquired Mary. 

"It did; and it held out so well that at the end of their three years 
of preparation these four lads surpassed all their companions both 
in ability and appearance, and to them were given the highest honors 
of the Kind's service." 

" Did Daniel keep ahead of the other three ?" asked Mary. 
"Yes; he was specially wise and good, understanding dreams, 
visions, and all other hard things. The King was very fond of him, 
too, and often called him in and talked with him, for he found Daniel 
ten times better, as the record puts it, than all the magicians and 
astrologers that were in all his realm." 




THE BOY COUNSELOR. 



292 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" Good !" shouted Charley. "That twig was bent to some pur- 
pose, wasn't it ?" 

"Who were the magicians and astrologers, Grandpa? I don't 
believe in magicians, and I don't know what the other word means.'' 

"I. don't wonder that you ask, Carrie ; and I am glad that you do. 
Men bearing these titles have always been famous in Eastern lands, 
and have had great power there. The magicians were professional 
tricksters, like the men who exhibit nowadays as necromancers, 
magicians, prestidigitators, and so on. Every art is used by such 
men to make their performances impressive, and much that they do 
cannot be understood by boys and girls, nor by most men and 
women. But there is nothing superhuman in all this It is mere 
skill." 

" That's what I think," replied Carrie ; " but who were the astrol- 
ogers ?" 

" Men who studied the stars and attempted to tell from them what 
was about to happen. They knew the stars well, but their pretense 
to foretell events by the stars was a humbuo-." 

" It wasn't so hard for sensible fellows like Daniel and his chuma 
to be ten times better than such old hulks, was it ?" asked Charley. 

"The old hulks, as you call them, had no God to help them as 
Daniel and his chums, as you call them, had," answered Mrs. Reed, 
smiling at the boy's familiar treatment of Bible characters. 

"Ah," said Mary, " those four are the boys for me." 

"They were four noble boys," answered Grandpa; "and their 
great success came from the fact that they preferred to do the rio-ht 
rather than to follow the ways of royalty. They stuck to their 
religious principles, though the)' were in the palace of a heathen 
kincr." 

, " They were boys worthy of high places," said Mrs. Reed ; " and I 
am sure such boys always will rise, whether in heathen or Christian 
lands." 



FAITHFUL AND FEARLESS. 293 

FAITHFUL AND FEARLESS; 

Or, BRAVING DEATH FOR DUTY'S SAKE. 



H 



ERE we are, Grandpa !" exclaimed Mary, as he entered 
the room where the children were already seated, awaiting 
his coming. " Here we are ! anxious to hear how our boys 
<*ot along-." 

"Always anxious about the boys," said Charley, with a knowing 
shake of his head — which called from Mary the good-natured retort, 
"They are never safe out of our sight." 

" Perhaps the shortest way to show how the boys got along is to 
read the last two verses of the second chapter of Daniel." 

No sooner had. Grandpa said this than Mary and Carrie both 
reached for the Bible. Carrie was the quicker, and in a moment 
read as follows: "Then the King made Daniel a great man, and 
gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole pro- 
vince of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise men 
of Babylon. Then Daniel requested of the King, and he set Sha- 
drach, Meshach, and Abed-nego over the affairs of the province of 
Babylon: but Daniel sat in the gate of the King." 

"The gate was where business was attended to. He sat to attend 
to the King's business ; he was the chief officer under the sovereign. 
Of course, all this made others envious of him and his Hebrew 
associates, and many schemes were devised against them." 

"Mean again!", said Mary, in a tone of deep disgust. 

"Yes. When you study human history you find plenty of mean- 
ness, but also a goodly amount of true nobility. Soon after the 
honors of which Carrie just read, Nebuchadnezzar set up a great 
19 



' 2: 'l GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



image of his god, Bel-merodach, and sent for all the chief men of his 
kingdom to attend its dedication and, at a given signal, to fall down 
and worship it. Daniel, for some reason, did not attend the service. 
He may have been sick, he may have been absent, or the King, 
knowing Daniel would not bow to this false god, may have excused 
his attendance or kept him busy elsewhere." 

'The other three were there, though. I'm sure of that," said 
Charley. 

' Yes ; and when they did not fall down and worship the image, 
plenty of accusers hurried to the King to report them. Nebuchad- 
nezzar was very angry and summoned the three faithful and fearless 
men before him. He offered them another chance. If they would 
fall down and worship the idol, well ; if not, they were to be cast at 
once into a burning, fiery furnace." 

" That was a tight pinch for 'em !" said Charley, with a shrug of 
his shoulders. 

"They did not hesitate about it, though, but frankly told the King 
they would not worship his image. That made the King furious. 
He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times hotter than usual ; 
then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were bound and tossed 
into the fire, which was so hot that it killed the men who threw them 
in ; but they three " 

" Were not hurt at all !" exclaimed the children, as Grandpa paused 
for them to end his story. 

"And why not hurt?" asked he. 

" Because," said Mary, " the Son of God joined them and took care 
of them." 

"And what effect had this on the King?" asked Grandpa; to 
which Mary replied : 

"When he saw four persons loose in the fire he called them out, 
and out came the three Hebrews, without so much as the smell of 
fire on their clothes. Then the King praised their God and ordered 
that everybody should serve Him." 



FAI1HFUL AND FEARLESS. 295 

" Well told, Mary ! In my absence you can become the chief story- 
teller for the family. These men braved a fearful death for the sake 
of doing their duty and serving God. Many years after this Daniel 
braved death in the den of lions rather than — do what ?" 

"Stop praying," answered all. 

" Yes. Envious men made that plot and had him cast to the lions 
because he would keep on praying." 

" Who was King then? — Nebuchadnezzar?" asked Charley. 

"No; he had become old and had died; Belshazzar had followed 
him and had been killed ; Darius then became King, and he it was 
who was trapped into casting Daniel to the lions. But the Son of 
God was with Daniel and the lions did not hurt him. All niofht 
Darius worried about what he had done, and early in the morning 
he went to see what had happened. To his delight he found Daniel 
safe. In a few minutes he was taken up out of the den and the men 
who had accused him were cast in. So hungry were the lions that 
before the men fairly reached the floor of the den the beasts had 
seized them and were crunching their very bones to fragments." 

."Whew!" exclaimed Charley; "that's where they got their pay 
in full — wasn't it ?" 

At this point Grandpa unrolled an engraving and spread it on the 
table, saying, " There is a picture of Daniel in the lions' den. Look 
at it carefully, and see whether it agrees with what I have told you." 

"Why, no !" shouted Charley. " Here is an angel pulling a man's 
hair, while the man is bringing a bowl of soup to Daniel. And then 
the walls are so low that any respectable lion could bounce out.." 

" There's the King peeping in," said Carrie. " The lions don't 
seem happy except this big fellow, who is picking a man's bones." 

" The whole thing seems wrong to me," added Mary. " It is meant 
for some other story, or the man who made it didn't know what he 
was about." 

"In the Apocryphal books of the Bible is an old legend about 
Daniel, and this picture represents that story. It says that Daniel 



2fiG 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



was left in the den six days, during which time the lions had no fu- \ 
at all, though usually two slaves and two sheep were cast to tnem 
each day. Daniel himself was near to starving until the angel of the 
Lord saw die prophet Habakkuk, away off in Judea, carrying dinner 




LEGENDARY IDEA OF DANIEL AMONG THE LIONS. 

to the reapers in his field. At once the angel seized him by die hair 
of his head, jerked him some four hundred miles into Babylon, and 
set him down in the den with Daniel, w^hen the prophet cried, O 
Daniel, Daniel, take the dinner which the Lord hath sent thee." 
"Ha, ha. ha!" shouted Charley. "And the soup wasn't spilt." 




THE KING BOASTING OF HIS GREATNESS. 



298 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



THE MYSTERIOUS MESSAGE; 

Or, PANIC AT THE FEAST. 



4 " I ^O-MORROW I leave you for a few weeks. I will write to 
you while I am away, but do you think you can read my 
-*- messages ?" 

"Why, Grandpa, of course we can," declared Carrie, earnestly. 
"I'd like to see a message from you that I couldn't read." 

"Well, darlings, I suppose you will be able to do that, but before 
I am off I will tell you about a message that nobody could read ex- 
cept one man. It was not only a mysterious message, but it caused 
a fearful panic at a splendid feast." 

"Where did it happen ?" asked Charley. 

"At Babylon, in the time of Daniel. Nebuchadnezzar, of Avhom 
we have talked. Avas a great King, and he became very proud. It 
is said that he walked upon the palace where he dwelt' in Babylon, 
looked out over all the splendors of that great 'city, and said, Is not 
this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by 
the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty :> While he 
tickled his own vanity by such talk, God decided to humble him. He 
lost his reason and was turned out to live among the beasts of the 
fields. At last God restored his reason, and as an old man he was 
both humble and devout. Years passed by, and one of his descend- 
ants, probably his grandson, Belshazzar by name, sat upon the throne. 
He was proud, Avicked, and rich. He cared little for good men, and 
hardly kneAv that Daniel still lived." 

"Where was Daniel then?" inquired Carrie. 

" He Avas in Babylon, probably in the palace itself, but not in honor 




■ 



Si 



l"Ti*« ~ 



300 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



or prominence. One day Belshaszargave a grand feast. A thousand 
nobles were present, with royal ladies and many others, as spectators 
They had plenty of wine, and, as the King f dt its power, he ordered 
that the gold vessels once used in the Temple at Jerusalem be brought 
into the banquet-room, that wine might be poured into and drank 
from them."' 

" Wasn't that very wicked ?" asked Mary. 

To be sure it was. They were sacred to God and His service 
but the King wanted them for the vilest purposes. They were 
brought, and men and women drank wine from them and cracked 
their drunken jokes over them." 

" What a shame !" exclaimed Carrie. "And to think that women 
would do such things." 

"They were old heathens, Carrie-that's what ailed them," said 
Charley in explanation. 

"It was in the midst of this drunken revelry," resumed Grandpa 
"that the mysterious message of which I spoke arrived " 

"By telephone?" asked Charley. 

" No, nor by telegraph nor by post," replied Grandpa, " but by a far 
more impressive messenger. Mary may read of it from Daniel v, 
5> o. 

Mary read these words: "In the same hour came forth fingers of 
a man's hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plas- 
ter of the wall of the King's palace ; and the King saw the part of 
the hand that wrote. Then the King's countenance was changed 
and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were 
loosed and his knees smote one against another." 

"Hey, boys ! That was a scare" sure enough," said Charley, seri- 
ously. J 

'Then the King called for his wise men, and promised immense 
rewards to any one who could read the message and tell what it 
meant. They came, they tried, but they failed. Not one of them 
*ould read the writing, much less tell the meaning of it. Everything 



302 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



was in confusion; everybody was in terror; and there glared that 
strange message on the wall where all could see." 

"Why didn't they hunt up Daniel then?" asked both the -iris 
"That's what others thought in this terrible moment, so he was 
called. He came, and he read the words. They were Mene, Mene 
Tekel, Upharsin. They meant that God had weighed that King in 
the balances and found him wanting, and for this reason his kingdom 
was divided and taken from him." 

••And was that all so ? Did he lose his kingdom ?" 
''Yes, Mary. Even while Daniel was speaking the soldiers of the 
Medes and Persians were advancing on the palace, having stolen 
into the city while the soldiers protecting it were drunk. In a few 
minutes the invaders broke in upon the frightened crowd ; blood 
flowed instead of wine; groans were heard instead of laughter; and 
that night the great, proud, wicked Belshazzar was slain, and his 
kingdom was divided between the conquerors." 

" Dear, dear me !" exclaimed Carrie, almost crying ; •" somebody is 
always in trouble." 

•• How did they steal into the city while the soldiers were drunk ?" 
inquired Charley, anxious to get more of the fight. 

_ " The river Tigris flowed through the city. Along each bank were 
high, strong walls. Here and there along the walls were gates with 
bridges connecting the two sides of the river. Above the & city there 
were great reservoirs, into which the water could flow when the river 
was higher than was safe for the city, and from which there was a new 
channel to carry the extra water away. The soldiers who were en- 
camped against the city dug a new and deep canal from the river into 
these reservoirs, and so the water of the river was turned out of its 
regular course, leaving the channel almost dry. Then the soldiers 
waded along the stream, clambered on the bridges, killed the drunken 
guards at the gates, entered the city, killing and burning all before 
them until the palace itself was reached. Then the King and all 
his nobles were slain, and the conquering Cyrus took the throne." 



WONDERFUL BABES. 303 

WONDERFUL BABES; 

Or. THE KING AND HIS HERALD. 



A 



FTER several weeks of absence Grandpa was once more at 
home, and the children besieged him for a new series of 
stories. He willingly consented, and after arranging a few 
business matters began his old style of after-supper talks in the 
sitting-room. 

lf I will tell you to-night," said he, "about the two most wonderful 
babes the world ever saw. Who were they ?" 

Guessing was lively for a few minutes. All agreed that one was 
Jesus, and after some delay Grandpa said the other was John the 
Baptist. 

Then Charley began : " I know Jesus was a great man, and so was 
John the Baptist, but I didn't know they were anything great as 
babies." 

"I learned in my mythology," said Carrie, " that when Hercules 
was a baby two big snakes crept into his cradle to kill him, but he 
squeezed them both to death." 

" He was a bouncing baby !" exclaimed Charley. " Good for 
him ! He ought to join a dime museum." 

" That story is told concerning Hercules, I know," replied 
Grandpa; "but we have no evidence that it is true. Neither Jesu? 
nor John were great in that way, however; and yet there were won- 
ders about their early days which far excel every other case." 

" What were those wonders ?" asked Mary. " Tell us about them 
Grandpa." 

" In the first place, God foretold their birth, sending angels to their 



304 



GRANDPA GOOuWIN'S STORIES. 



parents to tell jhem about the coming boys — what their name* 
should be, how great they should become, how much good they 
would do, and many other strange things. Zacharias, ihe father of 
John, was a priest. One day he was on duty in the Temple, when 




" There appeared unto him an angel of the Lord, standing on the right side of the altar nf intense" — 

Luke i, ir. 

suddenly an angel appeared and told him of John. Zacharia: 
doubted the angel's message and asked for proof of what he said. 
So the angel told him he should be dumb until this promise should 
he fulfilled in the birth of John." 
"And did he become dumb?" 



WOSDERI-UL BABES. 



30* 



" He did, Carrie, and remained so for many months. When the 
baby was born and Zacharias had written his name in the family 
record, then he spoke again and praised God, whom he had learned 
fully to believe." 




: ' Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Jnda; and en- 
tered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elizabeth." — Luke i, 39, 40. 

' : And did an angel go to the father of Jesus, too ?" 

"Yes, Charley; both to his father and his mother — to Joseph and 

Mary — and they were told about the wonderful son they should 

have. They were very glad because God intended to honor them 

so highly. To be the mother of Jesus and to be father to the King 



306 GkANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

of Kings were indeed high honors. Mary was so happy that she 
started off on a long journey to see Elizabeth, the wife of Zachari;.s, 
who was her cousin, and these two holy women rejoiced together, 
you may be sure. Elizabeth felt herself honored that Mary, the 
appointed mo ;her of the Lord, should come to see her, and her first 
greeting, as she bowed before Mary, was, Whence is this to me, that 
the mother of my Lord should come to me? Mary's answer to 
Elizabeth was full of tenderness and love. Mary made a long stay 
with Elizabeth, and after John was born went back to her own home." 

" I don't wonder Mary was happy," said Carrie. " It makes me 
happy to think about Jesus." 

"And it made others happy to see Him, even as a little baby. 
The people of that day used to take little babes to the Temple and 
offer a sacrifice for them. Joseph and Mary did this for Jesus, taking 
a pair of doves for their sacrifice, because they were too poor to 
buy a more costly offering. There was a good old man named 
Simeon, who had been assured that he should live to see the long- 
expected Saviour. He was in the Temple when Jesus was brought 
in. At once he recognized Him as the Christ, and, taking Him in 
his arms, he blessed Him, sure that this was indeed the one of whom 
the Scriptures had said so much." 

"What did His mother say to all this honor they showed hei 
baby ?" asked Mary. 

" We are not told what she said," answered Grandpa, "but we are 
told that she kept all these things and pondered them in her heart." 

"What is pondered them?" inquired Charley. 

"Thought carefully over them, remembered them. She knew 
something of the great work He came to do, and she watched every 
little thing even which bore on it, just as any other mother watches 
every little thing bearing on the welfare of her children." 

" How did Simeon know who this baby was?" asked Mary. 

"God taught him, doubtless. And a holy woman there, Anna by 
name, was made sure of the same fact, and joined in praising God." 



WONDERFUL BABES. 



30> 



" Well, those were wonderful things," said 'Mary ; " but there were 
other strange occurrences, too, when Jesus was born." 

" Yes ; and some of those I will tell you of to-morrow night if we 
be spared. Meanwhile, read in the opening parts oi the gospels 
just what is said about the Saviour's birth." 




" Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God" — Luke ii, 28. 

■' I shall read them all," answered Mary. 

"And I, too," said Carrie; while Charley roguishly added: "I 
needn't bother then. You girls can tell me all about it." 



308 



UK AN DP A GO OL> in XS STORIES. 



CHRISTMAS CAROLS: 

Or, HEAVEN AND EARTH REJOICING. 



G' 



RANDPA" began Carrie, "you have not told us about the 
- angels who sang when Jesus was born. That is a very 
sweet story ; I read it again to-day " 
_ -It is, indeed, delightful. I did not omit it as unimportant or un- 
interesting, but so that I could save it all up for to-night. That day 
when the angels sang was the world's first Christmas, the first birth- 
day of Jesus. His parents were at Bethlehem on business They 
had no place to stay but at the little inn or hotel, and even there they 
had to put up with a sleeping-place in the stable, where cattle were 
sheltered in the wet and cold season. There Jesus was born, and 

he 1 I A T\ ' " ."ST 1 ™ madG U P aS a little bed - ™d ^ it 
the Lord of all was laid." 

"Is that stable standing now, Grandpa?" asked Mary, eagerly 
A gentleman who addressed our Sunday-school said he hadbeen 
to the very place where Jesus was born." 

"The stable does not exist to-day, but the spot where it stood is 
quite certainly known. It is included in a great building called the 
Church of the Nativity There is a long, narrow, vaulted room called 
the Chapel o the Nativity. In it thirty-eight lamps are kept burn- 
ing continually. Just beside its entrance is a small vaulted recess 
where sixteen silver lamps burn all the time. The floor is marble' 
and at its centre is a silver star with the inscription. Here Jesus Christ 
was born of the Virgm Mary. This undoubtedly is the spot to which 
the gentleman referred." 

" And was Jesus really born just there ?" ' 



CHRISTMAS CAROLS. 



309 



" Yes, Mary, I think we may fairly say so. The place where the 
manger was and that where the wise men knelt when they came to 
worship Jesus are also pointed out in the same great building." 

"How I should like to see it!" exclaimed the girls together. 
Charley added his emphatic " Me too." 




" Lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them" — 

Luke ii, 9. 

"A little to the east of Bethlehem lies a beautiful and very fertile 

oiece of country known as the Valley of the Shepherds. There it 

was, in all probability, that the shepherds were watching their flocks 

when the angel suddenly appeared and told them of the Saviour's 

20 




510 



CHRISTMAS CAROLS. 



311 



birth. There it was that the angel was joined by a multitude of the 
heavenly host, praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, 
and on earth peace, good-will toward men." 

" What a splendid sight that must have been !" said Mary. " A 




" And when they had seen it, (key made known abroad the saying which was told tkem concerning this 

child." — Luke ii, 17. 

hnultitude of angels — that means a great crowd of them, don't it ? 
And all praising. God! Why, the shepherds must have thought 
themselves in heaven." 

" And what a splendid sound, too !" said Carrie. " Just to think 
of a choir of angels singing !" 



312 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" When the angels had ended their Christmas carol they went away 
into heaven and left the shepherds in darkness, which, doubtless, 
seemed all the darker for the glory which had just passed from them. 
But though in the dark and chill of night there was light and joy in 
their hearts. So they said, Let us go to Bethlehem and see for our- 
selves. To Bethlehem they hurried, and there they found the babe 
just as the angel had said. Then they hurried to their friends and 
neighbors, telling everybody what had come to pass." 

" How grand !" said Mary. 

" Everywhere the people wondered as the story of the wonderful 
babe was told. Heaven was glad and earth was glad, for the Lord 
had come to save His people. Visitors from all parts went to see 
for themselves, and they all came back rejoicing." 

" I wish I could have gone," said Carrie. " I love little babies any- 
now, and Jesus must have been just sweet." 

" Let us in honor of the Lord sing a Christmas hymn. Here is a 
splendid one to Harwell, a grand old tune," said Mrs. Reed. Then 
they gathered about the organ and sang: 

" Hark ! what mean those holy voices 

Sweetly sounding through the skies? 
Lo ! th' angelic host rejoices, 

Heavenly hallelujahs rise. 
Hear them tell the wondrous story, 

Hear them chant in hymns of joy — 
Glory in the highest ! glory ! 

Glory be to God most high ! 

" Peace on earth, good-will from heaven, 

Reaching far as man is found ; 
Souls redeemed and sins forgiven, 

Loud our golden harps shall sound: 
Christ is born, the great Anointed ; 

Heaven and earth His praises sing j 
Oh ! receive whom God appointed 

For your Prophet, Priest, and King." 



LED BY A STAR. 313 



LED BY A STAR; 

Or, A LONG WAY TO WORSHIP. 



" S GRANDPA," began Carrie, "who were the wise men who 
._. came to see Jesus ? I read about them yesterday and 

^-^ have often wondered who they were." 

" They were good and wise men who lived in distant countries to 
the east of Palestine — possibly in Persia. They spent much time in 
studying the stars, and every new appearance in the skies they took 
as a sign of some new and important event. While at their home 
in the far East they saw a wonderful star to the west of them. They 
knew that in the direction of this star lay Jerusalem, the chief city of 
the Jews, and that the Jews were expecting a king to be born who 
should set them free from the Romans, who had conquered them. 
Believing that God taught them this by the star, and anxious to do 
honor to this new King, these good men started on their camels 
across the desert between them and Jerusalem, traveling by night to 
avoid the heat of the sun, looking ever to the wonderful star ; and 
so they were led a long way to worship the new King, who was 
really the King of all kings and the greatest person ever born." 

" Don't we know anything more about these wise men ?" asked 
Mary. 

" Many things are told of them ; but we really are not sure of their 
correctness. It is said there were three of them and that they were 
kings. Their traditional names are Caspar, Melchior, and Baltazar. 
Three bodies, believed to be those of these three men, were brought 
in the fourth century from Jerusalem to Constantinople by the Em- 
press Helena. They were afterward taken to Milan, and in 1162 to 



314 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

Cologne, where they still remain in the great Cathedral of that city. 
They are for this reason generally spoken of as the Three Kings of 
Cologne." 

"But were they really kings, Grandpa?" 

" Possibly so, Mary. A prophecy in Psalm Ixxii refers to kings 
offering the Lord gifts and falling down before Him. This was done 
literally by these men. Turn to Matthew ii, ii,and see what it 
says." 

Mary did as directed, and read as follows : " And when they were 
come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary His mother, 
and fell down and worshiped Him: and when they had opened their 
treasures, they presented unto Him gifts; gold, and frankincense, 
and myrrh." 

" But were there only three of them, Grandpa ? I've seen pictures 
with lots of men." 

"Three kings, Charley, would not travel without lots of men to 
wait on them and take care of their camels. But men who make 
pictures do not know any more about these things than other folks. 
All that any one can do about it is to get at what history or tradition 
says, and then judge what is true. I am content to believe that there 
were three and that they were kings. However this be, they had 
one commendable quality — they came a long way, with great toil and 
at great cost, that they might honor the Lord. If we were as willing 
to serve Him it would be well for us and for those about us." 

" Don't you remember," began Mrs. Reed, " the Christmas hymn 
with the chorus beeinnincr, O Star of Wonder ! Star of Nigrht"? 

"Why, yes; but I never understood it," said Mary. 

"Well, come," replied her mother, " let us understand it and then 
sing it. The first verse is supposed to be sung by the Kings them- 
selves, all their attendants joining with them in the chorus. The 
second verse is the address of the first King. Caspar, for instance ; 
the third verse is the address of Melchior ; the fourth of Baltazar; 
the fifth verse all sing together. Now, Mary shall be Caspar ; Car- 




i-'OLLOWiNG A STAR. 



316 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 



rie, Melchior; Charley, Baltazar. Grandpa and I will be the ser- 
vants and help on the chorus. Are you ready ?" 

"Yes," they all shouted. So Mrs. Reed struck the chord, and 
right merrily, if not so artistically, they sang the old words as fol- 
lows: 

" We three Kings of Orient are ; 
Bearing gifts, we traverse afar 
Field and fountain, moor and mountain, 
Following yonder star. 

Chorus. 

" O star of wonder ! star of night, 

Star with royal beauty bright, 
Westward leading, still proceeding, 

Guide us to thy perfect light. 

" Born a King in Bethlehem plain ; 

Gold I bring to crown Him again 
King forever — ceasing never 

Over us all to reign. — O star, etc. 

" Frankincense to offer have I — 

Incense owns a Deity nigh; 
Prayer and praising, all men raising, 

Worship Him, God on high. — O star, etc. 

" Myrrh is mine ; its bitter perfume 

Breathes a life of gathering gloom ; 
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying — 

Sealed in the stone-cold tomb. — O star, etc. 

" Glorious now behold Him arise, 

King and God and sacrifice; 
Heaven sings ' Hallelujah ;' 

• Hallelujah,' the earth replies." 



PUZZLING HIS TEACHERS. 317 

PUZZLING HIS TEACHERS; 

Or, YOUTH WISER THAN OLD AGE. 



" ~T "T THAT you have told us about Jesus as a baby," began 
\/\/ Carrie, "was very interesting. Do we know anything 
* * about Him as a little boy?" 

" Not as a little boy," answered Grandpa, " but as a boy twelve 
years old we have a story of Him, however. It shows how He once 
puzzled His teachers." 

"We know more about Him as a baby, though, don't we, Grandpa?" 
asked Mary. 

" Well, what, my dear, do you know about him as a baby ?" 

"Why, how Herod wanted to kill Him; but God warned Joseph 
and Mary and they took Jesus off into Egypt, and then Herod killed 
a lot of boy babies, hoping to get rid of Jesus in that way. Then 
Herod died and God sent Joseph back into Palestine, and he went 
to Nazareth and lived there, and " 

"Well; anything more ?" 

" No ; I guess that's about all I know," replied Mary, with a smile. 

" It's more than I knew," added Charley, in a subdued voice and 
with a shrug- of his shoulders. 

"It is about all anybody knows," said Grandpa, "and it is all one 
needs to know, else God would have taught us more. But where 
did Jesus go when He was twelve years old ?" 

"To Jerusalem, with His father and mother and a great lot of folks 
from Nazareth. I read it last night in the second chapter of Luke ; 
but they went there to a feast, and that I don't understand." 

'* It was the feast of the Passover, to which all the men of Israel 



318 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



were required to go. But Joseph was accustomed not only to go 
himself, but also to take his family with him. He lived at Nazareth. 
Jerusalem was about seventy miles off, and they had to walk all the 
way. From four to six days were needed for a company of men, 
women, and children to make the journey. But good people would 
come from all parts of the land, bringing lambs and birds and other 
animals for sacrifices and offerino-s." 

" How funny it must have seemed to see people walking so far 
and taking those animals with them," said Mary. 

"Oh! they had happy times as they went. Many of the Psalms were 
written as marching songs, and as the people went they sang, and so 
served God on the way as well as at Jerusalem." 

"I think that was nice, Grandpa. It was like our Sunday-school 
marching days, when we all turn out in our best clothes, with music 
and singing and banners, and all that." 

"Something like that, Carrie. But Jesus thought less of the 
marching than He did of learning the truth, and so, when His people 
were about to start home, He forgot them and stayed in the Temple 
listening to the great doctors or teachers of the Scriptures. There 
He sat with them hearing what they said and asking them questions, 
while every person who heard Him was amazed at His questions and 
answers on the hard subjects of which the doctors talked. In that 
case the boy of twelve years was wiser than the teachers." 

"Where was His mother all this while?" 

"On her way home, Charley. She supposed Jesus was with the 
other boys jogging along homeward. When it came time to fix their 
camp for the night Jesus was not there. They looked for Him, but 
He could not be found. The next morning they started back to the 
Temple, and there He was, busy with His teachers, and seeming not 
to know that He had caused any anxiety by His love of instruction 
and His stay in the Temple." 

" He oughtn't to have done that, ought he, Grandpa ?" 

"So His mother thought, Carrie, and she gently chided Him for it; 



PUZZLING HIS TEACHERS. 



319 



but Jesus explained that He was about His heavenly Father's busi- 
ness, and that satisfied His mother." 

"That would satisfy any good mother," said Mrs. Reed, in her 
tender way. " Any mother would be happy to see her children doing 
God's work." 




" They found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, end asking them 

questions." — Luke ii, 46. 

"That's so," responded Charley, shaking his head approvingly. 
" That's good business for boys." 

"And then what, Grandpa?" asked Carrie, eager for the story to 
go on. 



320 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

"Then Jesus went home to Nazareth, where He grew in body and 
in mind, and was loved by every one who knew Him, and by God 
also, for see what is said in the last verse of the second chapter of 
Luke." 

Mary read: "And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in 
favor with God and man." 

" That is splendid," said Carrie. " But, Grandpa, was Jesus a 
carpenter?" 

" His father was. Jesus was subject to His parents, we are told, 
which seems to mean that He worked for and with them. In Mark's 
Gospel He is called a carpenter. So I have no doubt that Jesus 
really was a carpenter by trade." 

" Did He ever play like other boys ?" asked Charley. 

" Why shouldn't He ?" asked Grandpa. " Are boys' plays wicked ?" 

" Some of them are, I'm afraid." 

"Well, that kind Jesus did not play, Charley. But I think Jesus 
did all that any pure and noble boy usually does. When you play, 
fancy the boy Jesus to be with you. What He would join you may 
do. When He would stop you should not go on." 

"Well, that's a new idea," said Charley. "Play as Jesus would 
play — I'll try it to-morrow, sure." 

"Girls, too, may try that," said Carrie, "and I, for one, will do it," 
to which Mary added her promise also. 

"Glad of these good intentions," replied Grandpa. "I hope they 
will be fully carried out. And now, by way of amusement, I will tell 
you a few old legends about the boyhood of Jesus." 

"What are legends, Grandpa?" asked Carrie and Charley to- 
gether. . 

"They are accounts, or stones, which are not certainly true — some 
of them are certainly false. Those I tell you are probably false, but 
I tell them, as I said, for amusement rather than for instruction." 

" Go ahead, Grandpa," broke in Charley ; " we won't believe any- 
thing we oughtn't to." 



PUZZLING HIS TEACHERS. 321 

" One story is that Joseph, the father of Jesus, was engaged by 
King Herod to make a new throne. He did it, and Jesus helped 
him take it to its place and set it up. When there, alas ! it was too 
short, and Joseph was much distressed by the blunder. But Jesus 
told him not to worry, and taking hold on the end of the woodwork, 
He drew it out to the proper length, much to His father's relief." 

" Good boy !" exclaimed Charley, with a vigorous slap of his hand 
on his own knee. " He's the kind to have around." 

"Another legend tells of His first day in school. The master 
began to teach Him the Hebrew alphabet. Pointing to the first 
letter, the master said, Say Aleph. Jesus did so. Say Beth, said the 
teacher, pointing to the second letter. So they went on till directly 
some question arose as to the correct pronunciation. Jesus was 
positive the teacher was wrong, and the. teacher raised his hand to 
strike Jesus, but immediately his arm withered away. Then Jesus 
began and recited the entire alphabet, telling the teacher many things 
he never knew about it, until he in amazement said the boy had no 
need to come to him to learn, and begged Joseph and Mary to take 
Him away from school." 

" Ha, ha, ha !" roared the irrepressible Charley, fairly squirming 
with delight. " So He gave the old man the grand bounce, did he ? 
Good boy once more ! Hip, hip, hoorah !" So Charley let off his 
superfluous spirits, while the family laughed heartily at his comical 
view of the case. 



322 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 

A BACKWOODS PREACHER; 

Or, CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS. 



" / ^ RANDPA, we have enjoyed your talks about Jesus ever so 
I -_- much," said Mary; "but we have been talking among our- 

^—^ selves about John, the other wonderful babe. What became 
of him?" 

"We know nothing of him until God sent him to the Jordan to 
preach and baptize." 

" Who was there to whom he could preach at the Jordan ? That 
seems a queer place for one to go to preach." 

" But it was really a good place. The river had to be crossed at 
certain shallow places, as we cross our rivers at fords or at ferries. 
At these crossing-places people were continually passing and re- 
passing. Then these places were- far enough away from the cities 
to allow plenty of leisure for the people. They would stop and listen 
to John, and many would heed his words and be baptized at once. 
Indeed, so popular did he become in this backwoods, out-of-the-way 
place that people flocked to hear him from city and country alike, 
and great numbers submitted to his baptism and became his fol- 
lowers." 

" Oh ! I see," exclaimed Mary. " He would mount the rocks or 
the fallen trees or the stumps and preach — as we sometimes see 
street-preachers and the Salvation Army people do." 

" Exactly so. And John was a faithful preacher. He warned 
people of all classes to repent and abandon their sins. Poor people 
— whether men, women, or children — came to hear him, and he 
taught them what to do ; publicans — who were the tax-collectors of 




▲ BACKWOODS PREACHER. 



324 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES 



that day, and whom all men hated — came, and he taught them their 
duty ; soldiers, too, were among his hearers, but he had good advice 
for them. One other thing he did ; he kept telling all the time of 
One, mightier than himself, who was soon to appear, and who would 
do far greater and better things than had ever before been seen." 




" And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what shall we do ? And he said unto them. 

Do violence to no man." — Luke iii, 14. 

# 

" He meant Jesus, of course, Grandpa," remarked Carrie. 

"Yes; but he did not know certainly that Jesus was the great 
Saviour until Jesus came to him for baptism. He knew how holy 
Jesus was, and he said to Him then, I have need to be baptized of 



A BACKWOODS PREACHER. 



325 



Thee, and comest Thou to me? But Jesus insisted and was bap- 
tized. At that moment God spoke from heaven, calling Jesus His 
Beloved Son and bidding John to hear Him ; the heavens opened, 
also, and the Holy Spirit, in the form of a dove, descended and rested 
on the newly baptized Jesus. Then John knew for certain that Jesus 




" Johfi seelh Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Land of God." — John i, 29. 

was the Christ of the Old Testament, the long-promised Saviour 

who was to bless the world." 

"How glad he must have been to learn that!" said Mary, "and to 

have the honor of baptizing the Saviour." 
21 



326 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

"Yes; but in an instant Jesus left John, went into the wild, unin- 
habited country near by, and was there communing with God and 
conquering the devil for forty days. All this while, however, John 
kept on declaring, There standeth one among you whose shoes I am 
not worthy to bear. Who this worthy One was he did not say. The 
people wondered, but John did not name Him until some forty days 
after the baptism of Jesus, when, as John stood with a company of 
his disciples one day, he saw Jesus coming toward him. Then John 
shouted, Behold the Lamb of God ! who taketh away the sin of the 
world. In this way he introduced to his followers Jesus as the great 
Saviour." 

"That was splendid!" exclaimed Carrie. "John was a grand 
preacher if he didn't have a city church." 

"Yes; he was so true to his work, and so modest withal, that he 
spoke of himself not as a herald, nor a messenger, nor a minister, 
nor even as a man ; but he said, I am the voice of one crying in the 
wilderness. That was all he claimed to be — only a voice — a means 
whereby another made His mind known ; an instrument by which 
God spoke to men." 

" That was indeed modest. John must have been glad when he 
knew that the friend of his boyhood, Jesus, was God's own Son ano^ 
the world's great Saviour." 

"Yes, Mary," answered Grandpa. "And another grand point in 
John is, that he was bold as well as modest. He did not hesitate to 
reprove even his King for flagrant sin, though doing so cost John his 
liberty, and finally his life. He was thrown into prison for his bold 
rebukes, and Herodias, a very wicked woman whom King Herod 
had married, at last secured his death. Her daughter went in before 
the King and some company of his one day when they were all 
drinking and carousing, and she danced so charmingly before them 
that the King, in a boastful, bragging way, said he would give her 
anything she asked, even if it were half his kingdom. And what 
suppose you she did ask ?" 



A BACKWOODS PREACHER. 327 

"Jewelry, I guess, since she was a girl," said Charley, roguishly; 
" or else roller-skates." 

" No, my boy. She asked that the head of John the Baptist be 
brought to her on a big silver dish." 

"Horrors!" exclaimed Mary; to which Charley added the em- 
phatic cry, "She get out!" — accompanying his words with a kick 
that probably would have helped her out had she received its force. 
Carrie sat silent, but looked very sad at the idea of a young woman 
asking such a ghastly reward. 

"The King was sorry enough at this request," continued Grandpa, 
" for he really honored John. But having made a silly promise, he 
was silly enough to keep it; so he sent a soldier, who cut off John's 
head in the prison. The girl received the frightful gift and took it 
to the wretch she called mother." 

" So that was the end of dear, good John !" said Carrie, who was 
on the verge of crying. 

"The end of his life on earth, my darling. But his loving disci- 
ples took his body and buried it, and then went and told Jesus." 

" Jesus was sorry, I know," said Charley. 

"Yes. Jesus wept at the grave of Lazarus, and, I doubt not, at 
that of John also. But Jesus has comforted John since then, and 
John is satisfied. Jesus loved him, Jesus praised him, and he and 
Jesus are now together forever." 

"John's death," said Mrs. Reed, "reminds me of Montgomery's 
beautiful poem — 

" Servant of God, well done ! 
Rest from thy loved employ ! 
The battle fought, the victory won, 
Enter thy Master's joy. 

" The call at midnight came, 
He started up to hear ; 
A mortal arrow pierced his frame — 
He fell, but felt no fear." 



d28 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



THE WONDERFUL WATER-JARS; 

Or, SERVING HIS FRIENDS. 



H 



OW did Jesus begin His work?" asked Mary, when all were 
again ready for a new story. 

" His first public act was a miracle done in the village of 
Cana, not far from Nazareth, where Jesus lived. There was a Wed- 
ding-feast at this place, probably among the kindred of Mary, the 
mother of Jesus, and both He and she were present." 

"So Jesus went to wedding-feasts?" said Carrie, seemingly a little 
surprised at this festal side of His life. 

■ "O, yes! and to many other feasts, as you will see ; but wherever 
Jesus was, whether at a feast or a funeral, He was always full of love and 
good works. At this feast His mother had charge of things. Many 
guests were there, probably more than had been expected, and so it 
happened that in the midst of their festivities the wine gave out, and 
there was no way to get more." 

"Wine !" exclaimed Carrie, in surprise. " Did Jesus go to a feast 
where they used wine ?" 

" He did; and that is not all of it, either, as you will see. Mary was 
not pleased that when she was managing affairs this awkward failure 
of the wine should occur — so she hurried to Jesus, no doubt confident 
that He would help her, and said, They have no wine. He did not 
promise to do anything to relieve the difficulty, but somehow she was 
sure He would, so she said to the servants, Whatsoever He saith 
unto you, do it." 

" That's a good text to remember," said Carrie. - " Whatsoever He 
saith unto you, do it. I like that." 



330 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

"And darling," added Grandpa, "it is the only thing on record 
that Mary ever said about her Son. To Him she said several things 
that are told us ; of Him, so far as we know, she said this one thing 
only." 

" What did He do about the wine?" asked Charley, seemingly im- 
patient to get at the main point. 

" Well, there were six large earthen water-pots standing near, and 
He told the servants to fill them to the brim with water. Off they 
ran to die neighboring spring; water was quickly brought, and the 
jars were filled. Jesus did not touch them nor say a word over them. 
He simply told the servants to draw from them, which they did, and 
lo ! most excellent wine flowed out in abundance. So good was it, 
indeed, that guests who did not know at all whence it came pro- 
nounced it the best they had tasted for many a day. This was the 
Lord's first public act, and people were soon telling of it every- 
where." 

" I don't wonder," shouted Charley. " Guess I'd yell if I'd see a 
chap do that." 

" But, Grandpa," interrupted Carrie, " wasn't it rather queer for 
Jesus to make wine ? I don't think He was a very strong temper- 
ance man, or He wouldn't have done that." 

"It is by no means sure that the wine Jesus made was such as the 
strictest temperance people would condemn. Pure juice of the grape 
was much used without the ferment, which makes it intoxicating. 
From such wine no harm could come. But even if a strono-er wine 
was made, when used under the direction of Jesus no harm would 
come of it." 

" No, I'm sure of that. If wine were used that way it would do no 
harm. He never would help people to get drunk." 

" On the other hand, this miracle made good men believe that God 
had sent Jesus to teach them. One such man was Nicodemus, a ruler 
of the Jews. One night he hunted up the place where Jesus stayed, 
and, catling on Jesus, said, We know thou art a teacher come from 



332 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



God, for no man can do the miracles thou doest except God be with 

him. Had Jesus done what would make men drunken and vile, this 

good man would not have talked in this way." 

"What did the people at the feast think of this miracle?" asked 
Mar)-. 

_ " They praised the wine; they regarded the act as a glorious show- 
ing <rf the power of Jesus, and His disciples believed on Him all the 



more. 



" None of them saw any harm in the wine then, did the)' ?" asked 
Carrie. 

" Not the slightest," answered Grandpa. "Jesus went about doincr 
good, as was said of Him by those -who knew Him best. He never 
favored wrong-." 

"Let me," said Mrs. Reed, "before we close, give a little sketch 
of Kefr Kenna, the village supposed to be that formerly called Cana, 
where Jesus did this miracle :— It is a neat village, pleasantly situated 
on the descent of a hill looking to the southwest, and surrounded by 
plantations of olive and other fruit trees. There is a large spring in 
the neighborhood inclosed by a wall, which is doubtless that from 
which the water was drawn at the time of our Lord's visit. Water- 
pots of limestone are still used in the neighborhood, and some old 
•ones are shown as those which once -contained the miraculous wine. 
Here are also the remains of a Greek church, said to stand over the 
house in which the miracle was performed." 

" But these are not the real water-pots Jesus used, are they?" asked 
Carrie. 

" Probably not. In the eighth century one pot only was shown there. 
In the time of the Crusades, four hundred years later, six jars, all 
said to be originals, were captured there and carried to France, 
where one of them is said still to exist in the Museum at Angers.' 
But these claims are very unreliable. Nobody is sure that thev are 
true." J 



CHOOSING COMPANIONS. 333 



CHOOSING COMPANIONS- 

Or, HOW THE LORD GOT HIS HELPERS. 



1 f~~^ RANDPA, you spoke last night about a man named Nico- 
__- demus who was a friend to Jesus ; was he an apostle ?" 

^ — " No, Carrie. He was a ruler of the Jews; that is, a mem- 

ber of their great council, the Sanhedrim, about which we shall hear 
more as we talk on. He was a wise and honest man. He had known 
of Jesus and His miracles, which had convinced him that Jesus was 
certainly a teacher sent from God. Desiring to know more of God, 
he sought out Jesus that Jesus might teach and help him. Desiring 
no interference with his plans, he went by night and had a quiet, pri- 
vate talk with the Lord." 

" How lovely that must have been !" exclaimed Carrie. 

"Yes, it doubtless was so. There were many things Nicodemus 
could not understand, and he frankly said so ; but Jesus explained 
them and taught him of God's wonderful love, and Nicodemus be- 
came a true disciple of Jesus, though not of the open, active sort thai 
the apostles were." 

" Did he ever do any great thing for Jesus?" asked Mary. 

" One ^hat we know of, but probably many more. He it was who 
with the rich man Joseph went to Pilate and begged permission to 
take the body of Jesus from the cross and bury it. This has immor- 
talized his name in the early Christian history." 

" That was noble, certainly," said Mary, " for almost everybody left 
Jesus then. But how did Jesus get His disciples at first?" 

" So far as the apostles were concerned, Jesus gathered them to 
Himself in various ways." 



334 



GRAXDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" What is meant by apostles, Grandpa?" asked Carrie. 
" The word means, men sent out. The rame is specially given tc 
those men whom Jesus sent out to preach and to work for Him." 
" Who were they ?" asked Charley. 




: A uodemus anr 



' unto him, IIo-jc can these things be?' — John iii, 9. 



" Man- may turn to Matthew x, 2-4. and read the answer to your 
question." 

Mar)- read : " Xow the names of the twelve apostles are these : 
The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James, 
the son of Zebedee, and John his brother ; Philip and Bartholomew ; 



CHOOSING COMPANIONS. 



335 



Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James, the son of Alpheus, and 
Lebbeus, whose, surname was Thaddeus ; Simon the Canaanite, and 
Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him." 

" Did Jesus pay them anything?" asked Charley. 




These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying 

Matthew x, 5, 7. 



. As ye go, peach." — 



" Not as pay is generally made for services. They were well paid 
in the sense of doing right, which they had, and in the pleasure of 
serving God. For other pay they had not where to lay their heads 
most of the time. Several of them gave up their business that they 
might be free to follow Jesus. Andrew, Peter, James, and John were 



336 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



fishermen, but at the command of Jesus they left their nets and boats 
and followed Him. Matthew was a tax-collector, but he left his busi- 
ness also." 

"They must have loved Jesus very much to do all this for Him," 
said Carrie. 

" They did, but not more than many persons now love Him, and 
not more than all should love Him. He once said, Whosoever he 
be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disci- 
ple. Christ's chosen companions are willing- to give up evervthino- 
for Him." " ; 

"Who was the first apostle?" asked Mary. 

"Andrew and John were the first who became disciples. Andrew 
brought Peter, his brother, to Jesus, and Philip was also called very 
soon. But directly Jesus made these men and others more than dis- 
ciples, or learners, as this word means. He made them apostles, and 
sent them out to work." 

"To work at what?" asked Charley. 

"At preaching and doing good. They went without money, or 
any of the usual provision for such journeys, and the Lord took'care 
of them. They were all familiar with the work of fishing, so Jesus 
said, I will make you fishers of men." 

"Oh! yes," exclaimed Charley, "they would catch men for Jesus, 
wouldn't they ?" 

"That was their new business, and they went at it earnestly, 
and had good success. After Jesus left them, they preached every- 
where. Paul was added to their number in the place of Judas, who 
betrayed Jesus and was lost, and by these men churches were planted 
all over the known world." 

"And what became of these apostles?" asked Carrie. 
^ "James was beheaded by Herod Agrippa I, as we learn in Acts 
xii, i, 2. History tells us that both Peter and Andrew were cruci- 
fied ; also that John was thrown into a vat of boiling oil, but that he 
was preserved from harm, and afterward was banished to Patmos. 



CHOOSING COMPANIONS. 337 

He survived this, however, and finally died a natural death at a good 
old ao-e. Paul was beheaded at Rome. Bartholomew is said to have 
had the skin peeled from his body, and then to have been nailed to 
a cross. Their lot was by no means an easy one, you see, and yet 
they were faithful workers for the Lord." 

" I don't see how they could stand it, to have so much that made 
life miserable and to look forward to martyrdom at its end," was 
Mary's very serious comment. 

"I'd have given up," said Charley. 

" I, too," said Carrie. " But how did they feel while living so ?" 

"How Paul felt he tells us in his last letter to Timothy," said 
Grandpa, drawing the Bible toward himself, "and this is doubtless a fair 
sample of the feelings of the others. Paul says this in II Timothy iv, 
6—8: For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure 
is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I 
have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of 
righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at 
that day, and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His 
appearing." 

" Did Paul write that when he was near death ?" asked Carrie. 
'Yes; when he was in prison; in chains; almost alone; and 
when he knew his head was to be severed from his body in a very 
few days," answered Grandpa. 

" I don't see how he could write so beautifully. I'd do nothing 
but cry and scream if it were me," continued Carrie. 

" Oh ! no, my child," answered Grandpa, very tenderly. " If, like- 
Paul, you were in such peril for having done your duty, like Paul, 
you would find comfort, and be just as happy as he was." 



338 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



A DEN OF THIEVES; 

Or, THE RASCALS TURNED OUT. 



""AID you ever know what a tremendous stir Jesus made in 
J the Temple one day in the early part of His ministry?" 

"Why, no, Grandpa," answered all the children. "What 
was it? — Do tell us." 

" You remember Carrie's plan of the Tabernacle, with its Holy of 
Holies, its Holy Place, and its Court.* The Temple was on the 
same general plan, but it was a solid structure of stone — not a mov- 
able one of curtains and poles, like the Tabernacle. It had its Holy 
of Holies and its Holy Place. Around these was the Court of the 
Priests, where none but they and their helpers, the Levites, were 
permitted to enter. Around this was the Court of Israel, where the 
men of Israel who came to worship might stand. Beyond this was 
the court where the women and Gentiles might go — a court, in fact, 
that was common to everybody. This was the place where Jesus 
made the stir." 

"What did He do there, Grandpa?" urged Charley, whose expec- 
tation was aroused for something lively. 

" One day when the feast of the Passover was about to begin, 
Jesus went into this outer court of the Temple and found it crowded 
with tables and cages and stalls and all sorts of business contri- 
vances. There were men with coins spread out, ready to make 
change, so that exact money could be had with which to make pur- 
chases or to make gifts to the Temple treasury. Oxen were needed 
for sacrifices, and right in the Temple were stalls, and rude cattle- 

* See page 190. 



A DEN OF THIEVES. 339 



dealers were there to make a trade with any purchaser; others were 
selling lambs and doves and provisions and catch-penny wares of 
all sorts," 

" A sort of cattle show," said Mary, " or country fair — wasn't it, 
Grandpa ?" 



'' And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple." — John •*» '5* 

" Not unlike such. gatherings ; and of course this was very improper 
for the house of God. Jesus said, when He saw it, that while this 
place was called a house of prayer, these dealers had really made it 
a den of thieves." 



340 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" The people there were a rascally, cheating set, I guess," said 
Mary. 

" Yes ; they were there solely to make money — honestly if they 
could, but to make it at any rate. They had no respect for the place 
or its services. When Jesus went to the Temple and saw this He 
was full of indignation. Twisting up a bunch of cords into a scourge 
or whip, He charged on the money-changers and cattle-dealers, 
overturning their tables, spilling their goods, scattering their money, 
loosing their cattle, and driving the entire crowd pell-mell out of the 
Temple." 

. "Good!" shouted Charley; " served them right. But why didn't 
they turn on Him and bounce Him?" 

" Don't you remember what the old proverb says ? — The wicked 
flee when no man pursueth, but the righteous are bold as a lion. He 
was righteous ; they were in the wrong. He was not afraid ; they 
were. Nor could any of the official guards of the Temple stop Him, 
for He was doing what they ought to have done long before, and 
they knew it. He was doing a good work for a good place when 
He turned out those base intruders." 

" It seems odd to see Jesus having such a time with those men," 
said Carrie. 

" I guess those chaps kept away after that. They wouldn't want 
to be whipped out that way many times." 

" No, Charley. They made so much money there that they soon 
crept back, and later in His life Jesus did the very same thing over 
again. This was on the last day He spent in Jerusalem before His 
crucifixion. So He began His work by driving intruders from the 
Temple, and He ended it in about the same way." 

" Too bad that they should act so, but it isn't very different from 
the way some act in church even now," said Mary, in a thoughtful 
way. 

" One thing I don't understand, Grandpa. Those money-changers 
with their tables of money — who were they?" 



A DEN OF THIEVES. o41 

" Glad you speak of it, Carrie. I will explain. The law of Moses 
required that every male of Israel who was twenty years old or over 
should pay into the sacred treasury each year a half-shekel. The 
richest paid no more — the poorest paid no less ; and this sum must 
be paid in the sacred coin known as the half-shekel of the sanctuary." 

" How much was a skekel ?" asked Charley. 

"The half-shekel which they gave was not far from thirty cents of 
our money. Of course, every person who paid his dues in this coin 
had to get it of a money-changer, who charged about three cents 
premium for his service in the case. At the time of feasts, therefore.; 
when many visitors came to the Temple, these coin-dealers would 
drive a brisk trade and make lots of money." 

" I see !" exclaimed Carrie. " And the cattle and lambs would W 
bought at good prices, with lunches, peanuts, apples, and all such 
notions." 

" I'm not sure about the peanuts and apples, darling ; but you 
have the idea correctly. Just as about parades, shows, and crowds 
of all kinds with us the vender of peanuts and other truck is found, 
so there. Purchasers for all sorts of things were at the Temple ; that 
drew the sellers, also, that they might make money." 

"Well, I hope Jesus gave them a slashing," said Mary. "They 
might have done their trading outside the Temple and have shown 
some respect for a sacred place." 

"So Jesus thought; and thinking so He drove them out," said 
Grandpa. 



22 



342 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



WALKING ON THE WAVES ; 

Or, THE LORD OF THE SEAS. 



« T T THAT was the trade of at least four of the Apostles?" 

\/\ / asked Grandpa, in opening the conversation. 
V V « Fishermen," was the ready answer of the children. 

" In what waters did they fish ?" 

"Jordan," cried Charlie, but the others shouted " Sea of Galilee," 
to which Charley said, " Oh ! yes, Jordan's where Naaman washed 
himself. I remember now." 

To cover Charley's blunder, Grandpa kindly added, " The Sea of 
Galilee is really only a spreading out of the River Jordan, which 
enters it at the north and leaves it at the south." 

" Guess that's what I meant," laughed Charley. 

" The Sea of Galilee is a beautiful lake," resumed Grandpa, "some 
fourteen miles long by eight wide. It is surrounded by hills which 
are dotted with ruins and with little villages. It is very common for 
storms to come up suddenly on this lake, and the fishing-boats, 
wrongly called ships in our Bibles, are often upset or sunk." 

"I & should think Peter and the other fishermen could manage 
boats, even if it did storm," said Charley. 

"They could do all that any men could, but the boats were clumsy 
and poorly built, and the winds were very severe, so that sometimes 
even Peter was at a loss to know how to save his boat. One time 
Jesus and the other Apostles were sailing with him ; Jesus was very 
tired, so He had lain down and fallen asleep in the hinder part of the 
boat, His head resting on a pillow, or boat cushion. As they sailed 
on in the darkness, suddenly a gust of wind struck them and it rap- 



• r 4t GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



idly became a regular tempest. The waters were rough ; the wind 
was furious ; the night was dark ; the boat leaked and at every 
plunge she took in water; Peter and the others did all they knew, 
but it availed nothing ; their boat was about to sink." 
"And Jesus asleep all this while ?" asked Carrie. 
' Yes, dear; He was asleep. But they went and roused Him with 
the question, Carest thou not that we perish ? That was not a happy 
question, but Jesus rose and simply said, as He gazed out into the 
darkness, Peace, be still. At once the winds hushed; the waves 
ceased ; there was a great calm ; die little party was safe." 
"That was grand," said Carrie, with a sigh of relief. 
"That's company worth having when you go sailing!" 
" Yes, Charley, and worth having at any other time." 
"Was that the 'tim* Peter tried to walk on the water, Grandpa?" 
" No, Mary. On that occasion Jesus sent the disciples to cross the 
lake while He stayed behind that He might be alone to pray. Night 
came on and there was so strong a head wind that the boat made- 
very little progress. Midnight passed and morning drew near, and 
still the b ->at had not reached the other shore ; but then, to the amaze- 
ment of all on the boat, the form of a person walking on the water 
was seen in the distance." 

"Ugh!" exclaimed Charley; "that must have looked spookey." 
"I judge it did look spookey, as you call it, for the men were all 
frightened. Such an appearance they had never seen, and in their 
surprise and fright they said, It is a spirit." 

"Worse and worse," said Carrie. "If I didn't know what it was 
they saw, I should be scared myself." 

"As they looked and wondered and shivered, the strange being 
spoke. Over the waters came a voice, that could be heard clear and 
distinct above the rush of the wind and the plash of the waves. Be 
q{ good cheer, it said. Be of good cheer: it is I ; be not afraid. It 
was the well known voice of Jesus. It was He who was walking on 
the water and proving Himself to be Lord of the seas." 




WALKING ON WATER. 



346 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" How sweet !" exclaimed both girls at once. 

"How sublime!" exclaimed Mrs. Reed. 

" But what about Peter walking on the water?" urged Charley. 

" When Peter knew it was Jesus who was coming, he asked per- 
mission to go to Him on the water, and the Lord said, Come. Peter 
started. It was a ticklish job for him to walk on the water, rolling 
up and down as it was. But he looked right at Jesus and pushed on." 

" Go it, Peter !" exclaimed Charley. 

"He did go it for a few minutes; then he noticed how the wind 
was blowing and how the sea was tossing, and he thought how deep 
its waters were, and he began to doubt. In an instant he be^an to 
sink. As he went down he cried out, Lord, save; I perish." 

" An\ Jesus did it, didn't He?" said Carrie, with more of assertion 
than of question in what she said. 

" Yes, He did it," answered Grandpa. " He reached out His hand 
and caught Peter ; then, as He led him safely to the boat, He said, 
Wherefore didst thou doubt?" 

• " Sure enough," replied Mary. " Wherefore did he doubt when 
Jesus told him to come? It seems to me that I could walk on the 
water myself with such encouragement as he. had, especially if I saw 
Jesus near me." 

" And yet how hard it is," interrupted her mother, " for any of us 
to walk where Jesus bids us, even when we walk on the solid 
ground !" 

"Well," responded Carrie, " I never knew what a grand Saviour 
Jesus was. For my part, I'll trust Him everywhere, and try to serve 
Him always." 

At Mrs. Reed's suggestion, the party gathered at the organ and 
sang this verse from one of the old hymns : 

" Begone, unbelief, my Saviour is near, 
And for my relief will surely appear; 
By prayer let me wrestle, and He will perform, 
With Christ in the vessel, I smile at the storm." 



THE GREAT OCULIST 347 

THE GREAT OCULIST; 

Or, SIGHT FOR THE BLIND. 



" "T "Y THAT is an oculist, Grandpa?" This was Charley's salute 

\/\/ as he came in to supper somewhat late and considerably 

* " hurried. Without waiting for a reply, he ran on with 

his talk, saying, " The man who has moved into the corner has a new 

sign with oculist on it, and the boys say he is a fortune-teller. Is that 

what it means ?" 

" Why, no, my boy !" replied Grandpa, laughing heartily. " They 
are decidedly astray. An oculist is an eye-doctor, and many won- 
derful cures they make — which suggests that after supper we talk of 
the greatest oculist the world ever saw." 

" Good ! good ! good !" came from all sides of the table ; and 
when supper was over the fulfillment of the promise was claimed at 
once. 

" What did I say oculist meant ?" asked Grandpa. 

"A man who cures eyes," was Carrie's reply ; which Charley fol- 
lowed up by asking, " Can he cure them if you're blind?" 

"That," replied Grandpa, "depends on the cause of the blindness. 
If the eyes are destroyed, or if what is called the optic nerve is dead, 
there is no cure ; but if the trouble be with the front of the eye — as 
in what is called cataract, where a film or skin grows over it like a 
curtain — then surgical skill may cure it, and does so in many cases. 
But the greatest oculist of the world did not use instruments or 
medicines. Indeed, when He lived such articles were hardly known. 
They could scarce have been had, even if wanted." 

" How did He cure eyes, then ? If He had no medicine and no 



^ GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

cunning little knives I can't see how He did anything with them " 
said Carrie. 

" He did it in various ways. Sometimes He simply touched 
the eyes of people who had been born blind and they saw at once " 

"Oh! you mean Jesus. I know He did such things. No man 
ever did. But now you have aroused my curiosity, and I want to 
know more about how He gave sight to the blind," was Carrie's reply 

"The first account of the active work of Jesus tells of His going 
about in Galilee, teaching, preaching, and healing all manner of sick- 
ness; then we are told that they brought to Him from all parts the 
lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and He healed them 
How the people felt who saw these marvels Mary may read to us 
from Matthew xv, 31." 

"The multitude wondered," began Mary, "when they saw the 
dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the 
blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel." 

" I should think they might well wonder, and glorify God, too 
when they saw such work as that." 

" Yes, Carrie ; they could hardly fail of that. How Christ healed 
those blind persons we do not know. Among the first He restored 
to sight, however, were two blind men who followed Him, callin-r fo, 
mercy. At last He asked whether they believed He was able unheal 
the, 1. They answered, Yea, Lord. Then He touched their eyes 
and at once they saw." 

" Just touched them ? Nothing more ?" asked Carrie, with evident 
surprise. 

"That is all. Another blind man was brought to him one day and 
they asked Jesus to touch him, as He had touched the others. But 
Jesus treated this man in another way. He took his hand and led 
him out of the town ; then He wet the man's eyes with spittle, and 
asked him if he saw anything. The man said he saw men as trees 
walking-." 

" Ha, ha !" laughed Charley, " I'd like to see trees walking." 



THE GREAT OCULIST. 



340 



"That would be a show, sure enough," answered Grandpa; "but 
what he saw was men walking- about, and they looked as he 
imagined trees to look, big, and with no very clear outlines. He 
did not have clear, sharp vision. So Jesus put His hands on the man's 
eyes and then everything was clear." 




>' And ■when he was co?ne into the house, the 6,'ind men came to him: and Jesics saith unto them, 
Believe ye that I am able to do this ? They said unto him, Yea, Lord." — Matthew ix, 28. 

" Grand !" exclaimed Mary. " He was, indeed, a splendid oculist. 
The grandest of them all !" 

" Who else was cured ?" asked Charley. 

" You have heard of Bartimeus, the blind man whom* He healed 



350 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



near Jericho. This man, with another, sat begging at the wayside 
when they heard the noise as Jesus passed by. Learning that this 
great eye-doctor was so near, they began to call at the top of their 
voices, becrginof that He would heal them. Jesus did not answer 
for a time, so they crowded ahead and called the louder, until the 
people told them to be quiet. But they would not be quiet. Then 
Jesus stopped and they came near to Him. What will ye that I shall 
do? said He. Lord, that our eyes may be opened, said they. Then 
Jesus spoke the healing command and they both saw clearly." 

"That was wonderful !" exclaimed the girls, to which Grandpa 
added, " Yes, and Luke says, All the people, when they saw /it, gave 
praise unto God." 

"Who else was cured, Grandpa?" again asked Charley. 

"John tells about a man who had been born blind, whom Jesus 
met one day. He wet some clay with spittle and put it on the man's 
eyes, and then sent him to wash in the pool of Siloam. The man 
went and washed, and came back with perfect sight. This miracle 
made so great an excitement in Jerusalem that it nearly cost the 
healed man his life, but he became a lover of the Lord from that 
day." 

" So he ought to," was Charley's earnest declaration. "Jesus did 
a biuf tiling for him." 

" He has done big things for us all, my boy, and we all ought to 
love Him." 

" Who else did He cure?" asked Carrie, adding, "I do so love. to 
hear about these kind acts of His." 

" Ccrncy' said Mary, " let us sing about Bartimcus. So they 
n-athered around their mother at the organ and sang the old hymn 



which begins 



" Mercy, O thou Son of David ! 
Thus blind Bartimcus prayed, 
Others by Thy word are saved, 
Now to me afford Thine aid." 






"swssaj 




THE OCULIST AT HIS WORK. 



352 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



GETTING AT THE DOCTOR; 

Or, ODD WAYS OF GAINING A CURE. 



LAST night we talked about one line of healing which Jesus 
die]. Borrowing a name from the sign Charley told us of, 
we called the Lord an oculist, because He did such wonders 
for the eyes of the blind. But now I want to tell you of other won- 
derful cures He made. He was the great Physician as well as the 
great Oculist. He cured all manner of diseases." 

" Tell us about some of them, please," said Carrie, speaking for the 
little company. , 

"I'll tell you about two cases, a man and a woman, both of who; 1 
had a hard time to get to the great Doctor. The woman had been 
sick twelve years and none of the physicians could do her good. 
She had spent all her money seeking a cure, but she was worse 
rather than better, and so, as a last resort, she determined to go to 
Jesus, of whose wonderful cures she had heard. 1 here was a oreat 
crowd about Him as He passed along, and she, weak and sick as she 
was, was not able to force her way through. Then, too, she was 
modest about it, and so came up behind Him, for she said to herself, 
If I can touch His clothes even, I shall be cured. So she worked her 
way through the dense crowd, up close to Jesus, and touched His 
outer garment as He passed." 

"And did she really believe that would cure her?" asked Carrie. 

"She did, and she was not disappointed, for at once she felt that 
she was made well. Jesus knew what had happened, though He did 
not se2 her, so He turned about and asked, Who touched my 
clothes ?" 




CURED DESPITE THE CROWD. 



354 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 



" That was a queer question to ask in such a crowd. I should 
think people were touching- His clothes all the time." 

" So they were, Mary ; but this woman's touch was not of the ordi- 
nary kind. He knew what it meant. She was full of fear lest she 
had displeased the Lord by taking this liberty, but she frankly con- 
fessed all she had done, and He, instead of blaming her, commended 
her and sent her away a happy and well woman." 

"That was an odd way of getting cured," said Mary, " and a queer 
way of getting at a doctor, too," added Carrie. " But what became 
of this woman ?" 

" We do not know," answered Grandpa. •" She is one of the many 
whom Jesus blessed who sank out of sight at once. In the great 
future we may meet and greet many of these, but now we know 
nothing of them." 

" What did the man do about the doctor?" asked Charley. " What 
ailed him ?" 

" He did very little, for the reason that he was helpless from the 
palsy, a disease which makes a man unable to help himself. He 
could not go to Jesus, so four men carried him, but when they got 
him there so great was the crowd in the house and about the door 
that they could not get anywhere near." 

" That was too bad," said Carrie, in a sympathetic way. " And 
did they not get in at all ?" 

" Oh ! yes, in an odd way. The houses there were built with flat 
roofs, up to which people went by an outside staircase. They carried 
the sick man up this to the roof. Jesus was in the central square or 
yard of the house, but over this was a light roof to protect it from 
the heat of the sun. That the men tore up. as they could with ease, 
and down over the heads of the crowd below they lowered their 
friend right into the presence of the Great Physician." 

" Well, well !" exclaimed Mary, " they were real Yankees to think 
of such a way. The idea of breaking up the roof of a man's house! 
That was odd. And what came of their queer proceeding?" 




BOUND TO REACH THE DOCTOR. 



356 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 



• When Jesus saw how determined they were to get the man near 
to 1 Iim, he said to the man.Thy sins be forgiven thee. He knew the 
man was a sinner and was sorry for sin, so He began with that which 
was the worst and forgave his sins at once. But some who were 
there complained at His claim to forgive sin, so Jesus silenced them, 
and at the same time showed His power by commanding the man to 
arise, take up the bed on which he had been brought there, and to 
walk away a well man. No sooner had Jesus said it than the man. 
did it. Well and strong again, he picked up the couch on which he- 
had b?en carried, and away he went through the wondering crowd, 
away to his home and surprised friends, while everybody said, We- 
il jver saw it on this fashion." 

" I guess not. There never was a doctor who could do such cures," 
was Mary's comment, while Carrie, after a moment's thought, added 
"And the man's sins were forgiven, too. He must have been a 
happy man ! Only think, he went home a well man, and a Christian 
man." 

As Mary was speaking her mother went quietly over to the organ, 
and when Mary was through Mrs. Reed sang very sweetly the hymn 
beginning — 

"The great Physician now is near, 

The sympathizing Jesus; 
He speaks the mourner's heart to cheer, 

Oh ! hear the voice of Jesus ! 
Sweetest note by angels sung, 
Sweetest name on mortal's tongue, 
Sweetest carol ever sung — 

Jesus ! precious Jesus !" 



THE CHILDREN'S FRIEND. 357 

THE CHILDREN'S FRIEND; 

Or, JESUS AMONG THE LITTLE ONES. 



" f^ RANDPA," began Carrie, "I know that Jesus loves children. 
I -_- Won't you tell us about that to-night?" 
^ — "Yes, darling, with pleasure. He was often among the 

little ones, and He always showed Himself the children's Friend. 
Mark tells in his gospel of a time when many women began to bring 
their children to Him that He might touch them. They knew His 
touch healed disease and restored sight, and they probably thought 
it had some magical power in it which would do the children good — 
as people say, give them good luck. So great a rush of this kind 
set in that the disciples rebuked the women, thinking to put a stop 
to it. But Jesus was displeased with their rebuke and spoke those 
memorable words, Suffer the little children to come unto me and 
forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of God." 

" It was real sweet in Jesus to be so kind to the little children," said 
Carrie. " Those disciples were in too big a hurry trying to stop 
them." 

" This is the story," chimed in Mary, " that we sing about some- 
times — 

" I think when I read that sweet story of old, 
When Jesus was here among men, 
How He called little children like lambs to His fold— 
I should like to have been with Him then. 

" I wish that His hand had been laid on my head, 
That His arms had been thrown around me, 
And that I might have heard His kind voice as He said, 
Let the little ones come unto me." 
23 




A HELPING HAND FOR THE BOY. 



THE CHILDREN'S FRIEND. 359 

"But," asked Charley, "did Jesus throw His arms about the chil- 
dren, Grandpa, or is that just hymn talk?" 

"Mark x, 16, says, He took them up in His arms, put His hands 
upon them, and blessed them. So it is not hymn talk, as you call it, 
Charley." 

" I didn't mean to hurt the hymns a bit, Grandpa," said the boy, 
apologetically. " I only wanted to know if that was fun- or earnest." 

" Real earnest, my boy. Jesus did these very things. Another 
time a man brought to Jesus his son, who was a poor, miserable suf- 
ferer. His trouble was like what we call fits or spasms. He would 
suddenly fall and toss and tremble and foam at the mouth, and then 
be left so weak that he could hardly move. In time this disorder 
affects the mind, so that the sufferer becomes idiotic and unfit for work 
or for play." 

"I know a boy who's that way," broke in Charley. "They call 
him Simple Mick, but I pity him ever so much." 

" Such a person is to be pitied greatly," resumed Grandpa. "Jesus 
pitied this poor boy and cured him, but the boy, possibly having fainted, 
lay on the ground as if he were dead. Indeed, people said, He is dead. 
There he lay, thin, pale, dirty, ragged, and seeming to be dead ; but 
Jesus came near and took him by the hand. Yes, he took hold of 
that poor, dirty hand, for the boy had been wallowing over the ground 
in a hard fit ; then Jesus lifted him up, and the boy was all right." 

"Ugh!" exclaimed Carrie, with a shudder. "I would have been 
afraid to touch such a boy." 

" So would I," responded Mary ; and Charley, even, put in his 
usual " Me, too." 

"There is another beautiful instance of Jesus as the child's Friend 
in the case of the little daughter of a man named Jairus. She was 
very sick and her father hurried off for Jesus, the Great Physician. 
Jesus was ready and started at once to heal the child. As they went, 
however, a servant came running and told them that the little girl 
was dead. Her father was in great sorrow at the news. He thought 



SCO GRANPA GOOD U IN'S STORIES. 



all was certainly over; his little girl was surely gone. But Jesus 
comforted him, saying, Be not afraid — only believe. They hurried 
on. When they reached the house the friends and neighbors were 
there, weeping and wailing, as was the custom, and making every 
show of sorrow because the little girl had died." 

" I don't wonder," said Carrie, wiping her own eyes. " And her 
father was away when she breathed her last ; that was too bad !" 

"Jesus tried to quiet the people by saying the child was not dead. 
But they knew she was dead; so they ridiculed Jesus and probably 
thouo-ht Him crazv. But He sent them all out of the house ; then 
He took the sad father and mother and the disciples who were with 
Him and went in where the little girl lay so still and white in death. 
How long He looked at her I do not know ; He was never in a 
hurry. He and the others looked and looked, and sobbed, I doubt 
not. Then Jesus took hold of the little, thin, dead hand and held it 
for a moment ; then He said to the little girl, Talitha-cumi." 

"What did He say?" asked Charley. 

" Talitha-cumi." 

"And what is that?" inquired Mary ; for Carrie was too busy with 
her own tearful blue eyes to ask questions. 

" Mark's gospel says it means, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise; but 
the first word is brimful of tender love, as if Jesus had said, Dear 
little girl, I say unto thee, arise." 

" And did she arise ?" sobbed Carrie. 

" Mark says, Straightway she arose and walked. Then He told 
them to give her food, and He went on His way." 

"She wanted Him to stay at her house, I'm sure. Why didn't 
He?" 

"No doubt she did, Carrie; but Jesus had other duties--so or 
He went to do good elsewhere." 

" How old was she, Grandpa ?" 

" Too old for you, Charley. She was twelve." 

"Just my age," said Carrie, brightly. 




'* DEAR CHILD, ARISE." 



362 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



Mrs. Reed here proposed to read a poem on the raising of th« 
little girl. All assenting, she read these words : 

" The boat that bore the Master had crossed the silver sea, 
And all along the mountain paths of rugged Galilee 
Were sounds of voices eager-pitched, was throng of hurrying feet — 
For then, as now, were weary hearts, and Jesus' words were sweet. 

" With passion-freighted earnestness, intense and clear as flame, 
Through tumult cleaving swift its way one prayer of pleading came: 
My little daughter lieth sick, she lieth near to death; 
Oh ! on her lay Thy gentle hands, restore her fainting breath ! 

"The stately ruler bowed his head before the Nazarene, 
And meekly led the way for Him the surging ranks between ; 
But ere they readied the stricken house was message brought of woe : 
Thy daughter even now is dead, vex not the Master so. 

"Dark grew the father's face with grief, with tears his eyes were dim ; 
Who did not know this darling child was all the world to him ? 
How could they call her dead? the dear, the beautiful, the bright — 
For him the summer lost its bloom, the noonday lost its light. 

" Then tenderly unto his thought, as if to soothe its ache, 
Be not afraid ; still keep thy faith, with power the Master spake, 
Though long and keen the mourners' wail was borne upon the air — 
The bitter cry of agony, the voicing of despair. 

"The Master hushed the clamor by the peace upon His face, 
As up the stair He softly passed, and stood within the place 
Where, wan and pale, the maiden lay, a lily frozen there, 
And round her whiteness, like a cloud, the darkness of her hair. 

" So still the little feet that late had danced to meet her sire ! 
So still the slender hands that swept but now the golden lyre ! 
In this deep slumber can she hear the thrilling word, Arise? 
Oh ! will she at that kingly look unclose those sealed eyes ? 

" She hears, she stirs, she lives once more. What joys for some there be.. 
When to their hour of gloom the Lord has crossed the silver sen ! 
And though to us He give not back our dead, yet, better far, 
We know that where He dwells to-day in life our dear ones are." 



CALLED BACK FROM THE GRAVE. 363 

CALLED BACK FROM THE GRAVE; 

Or, VICTORIES OVER DEATH. 



THE family had no sooner assembled in the sitting-room than 
Carrie declared, " I have scarce thought of anything all day, 
Grandpa, but of that little girl whom Jesus raised from the 
dead ; and of the kind words He spoke— Dear little girl, I say unto 
thee, arise ! That was just too lovely for anything." 

" Didn't He raise lots of other folks ?" asked Charley. 

" Not very many," answered Grandpa ; " but His greatest work of 
raising the dead is yet to come, and we will all be there." 

" You mean the resurrection at the last day, Grandpa, don't you ?" 
asked Mary. 

" Yes, darling. At that time, as Jesus puts it, The dead shall hear 
the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. But 
Jesus did call back from the dead several persons in addition to the 
little girl. One of these was a young man whose home was at Nain, 
a small city not very far from Nazareth." 

"What was the young man's name?" asked Charley. 

" We do not know. His mother was a widow and he was her only 
son. As Jesus came near the gate of the little city He met the 
funeral coming out ; not with hearse and carriages, as at our funerals, 
but with loving friends carrying the dead body and others following 
after, with the mother, to the place of burial. When Jesus met them 
His great, loving heart was filled with compassion for the poor 
mother. He spoke to her very tenderly and said, Weep not." 

" Why, how could she help weeping when her son was dead ?" 
asked Carrie. 



364 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



"She could not, except as her confidence in Jesus may have 
assured her that her son should be raised. Jesus then stepped for- 
ward and touched the coffin, and they who carried it stood still. 
Then He spoke to the dead young man, saying: Young man, I say 
unto thee, arise ! There was a momentary rustling of the grave- 




" And he said, Young man, I say unlo thee, Arise. And he that ~vas dead sat up, and began to 

speak." — Luke vii, 14, 15. 

clothes ; a motion beneath them ; and the young man sat up in the 
open coffin and began to speak. Then Jesus left him in his mother's 
arms and went His way." 

" What a stir that must have made !" exclaimed Mary. 



3G6 • GRANDPA GOODWIN'S ^TORIES. 



" It did. Some who saw it were filled with fear. Others said that 
God had sent a great prophet into the world ; and so the news of 
what had been done went all through that country." 

" Well," said Carrie, " I don't know which was the greater, this or 
the case you told us of last night." 

" I can tell you of another which I think greatest of all," continued 
Grandpa. 

"Oh! do, please," was the unanimous demand of the children, 
Carrie adding, " We want to hear about everybody you know." 
" There was a man named Lazarus — " 

" I know about him," shouted Charley, "he kept a lot of dogs, and 
was covered with sores, and — " 

"Hold on, Charley, hold on," cried his mother. "You interrupt 
Grandpa very rudely, and besides, Lazarus did not keep dogs ; and 
further, the Lazarus Grandpa spoke of was not Lazarus the be'^ar 
who is your hero, but quite another man." 

"Beg pardon," said. Charley, very humbly. "There are so few 
Bible people I'm acquainted with that I was glad to come across a 
chap I thought I knew." 

"Well," resumed Grandpa, u my Lazarus had two sisters, Mary 
and Martha, and they were all very dear friends of Jesus, who often 
lodged at their house." 

" Where was their house ?" asked the boy. 

"At Bethany, a pretty little village among the hills, some two miles 
east of Jerusalem. A small ruin is now shown at this place as the 
house where Lazarus lived and Jesus lodged so long acre Once, 
when Jesus was far away, Lazarus became very sick. They sent at 
once, but before He reached Bethany, Lazarus had died and had 
been buried four days. His sisters were in the deepest distress. 
They felt sure that had Jesus reached there sooner, Lazarus would 
not have died. He came, however, and after some talk with them 
Jesus started to the grave, the sisters and a great company follow- 
ing. The grave was a vault hewn in a rock, and a great stone lay 



CALLED BACK FROM THE GRAVE. 



367 



upon the opening. In the rocks along the roadside such graves are 
common there to-day, and one is pointed out as that of Lazarus. 
They reached the place and stood about it weeping. Jesus wept, 
as the shortest verse in the Bible tells us in this very account of 
Lazarus." 




" Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid 

dead -came forth." — John xi, 41, 44. 



And he that was 



" I know that verse, Grandpa ; it is John xi, 35." 

" Yes, Carrie, and that chapter tells all about the raising of Laz- 
arus. When they had stood and wept awhile, Jesus said, Take ye 
away the stone. Martha did not favor that, however. Her brother 



3G8 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES 



had been dead so long that his body would not be fit to see. Its 
odor, too, would by this time be sickening. But they did as Jesus 
commanded. Inside the tomb could be seen the dead body wrapped 
in grave-clothes. Pouring out from the open door came the disgust- 
ing smell of putrefaction. But Jesus prayed, and then called with a 
loud voice, Lazarus, come forth! It was broad daylight; everybody 
could see clearly; and lo ! the dead man, bound as he was in the 
grave-clothes, rose up and came out of the tomb." 

"Ugh!'' shuddered Carrie, "I could not have stood that." 

"Loose him and let him go, said Jesus. They did loose him, and 
he did go back home with his now happy sisters. This made Jesus 
so popular that the leaders of the Jews decided to kill Him, and to 
escape their fury Jesus left Jerusalem and dwelt in an obscure place 
near the Jordan." 

" Why, I am amazed !" exclaimed Mar)'. " Why should they want 
to kill Him for such an act?" 

"Simply because they were envious of His popularity. Every- 
body loved Him so much they were afraid they would lose their hold 
on the people." 

"Such men would soon lose their hold on me. I want nothine to 
do with such folks," said Carrie. 

"Me, too," shouted Charley. "I wish more people did as Jesus 
used to. He made everybody happy !" 



THE ROYAL SHEPHERD. 369 

THE ROYAL SHEPHERD: 

Or, LOVE FOR THE LOWLY. 



MARY was very anxious for the early assembling of the 
family, for she had a question which evidently was import- 
ant to her and she wanted to ask it. 

When they were fairly ready for work, she said : " I don't know 
why Jesus should have been so much concerned for the lame and 
blind and all other suffering people. It seems to me He would have 
enjoyed well people and happy people a great deal more." 

"I am not surprised that you think so," responded Grandpa; "for 
His love to men and His kind work for the lowly are really amazing. 
Why He felt and acted so we may not be able to explain. His love 
is always spoken of as above any other love — even as beyond that 
of a mother." 

" Nobody can tell how much a mother would do for a child — can 
they?" asked Carrie. 

" No ; and nobody can tell what God would do, or what His Son 
Jesus would do. There was one way in which Jesus often spoke of 
Himself and His work that helps very much to make it plain." 

" Tell us about that, please. I want to understand it better," said 
Mary. 

" In Palestine," began Grandpa, " the raising of sheep is very ex- 
tensively followed. Almost every man keeps some sheep, and many 
men have immense flocks, thousands of sheep sometimes belonging 
to one person. Many men follow the care of sheep as a trade ; 
they are known as shepherds, and most of their time is spent with 
their flocks." 



370 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

"That's a jolly trade!" exclaimed Charley. "It must be real fun 
to be a shepherd." 

" What makes you think so ?" asked Grandpa. 

"Oh! I've seen pictures of 'em sitting around on the grass, play 
ing music on flutes and other things and having a good time, the 
sheep scampering around and everything so nice." 

"Ah, Charley! that's the shepherd of the picture-books. The real 
shepherd has to go away from home, spend days and nights out-of- 
doors, hunt up pasture and water for the flocks as one place or an- 
other may fail, defend them from thieves or beasts of prey — do all, 
in short, that the care of an immense flock may require — and this is 
no easy work." 

" That part I'd not do ; I'd let my hired man do that," replied the 
boy, with a twinkle in his eye. 

" When the sheep are in the fold, near the owner's home, then he 
may have a good .time. Sheep soon get to know and trust those 
who feed and take care of them ; they come at his call, they follow 
him, they answer to the names he gives them, they cluster about him 
lovingly, and, except at his command, they will not leave him. This 
is the kind of shepherd Charley wants to be — isn't it?" 

"That's the kind, Grandpa; lots of fun and no hard work." 

" But that, dear boy, is not the kind of shepherd Jesus is. We are 
His sheep ; He loves us ; He calls us. But do we follow Him ? Not 
always, not very closely. But He does not become impatient ; oh, 
no ! He feeds and leads us, He loves and protects us. He calls 
Himself the Good Shepherd, and says, The Good Shepherd giveth 
His life for the sheep." 

"That was true of Him," said Mary. " He did give His life for 
the sheep — didn't He ?" 

"Yes," answered Grandpa; "and He gave much more. He lived 
for men and worked for men, as well as died for them. In one par- 
able He represents a sheep as having gone astray and Himself as 
the Shepherd going to seek it. And He seeks until He finds it. No 




THE FOND SHEEP-KEEPER. 



372 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

matter how long the journey, how rough the way, how steep the 
mountains, or how deep the valleys, He pushes on until the sheep is 
found; then He lays it on His shoulders, rejoicing, and carries it 
home in safety." 

" I'm not sure I know what Jesus meant to teach by that," said 
Carrie, thoughtfully. 

"Why, darling, it shows how He has sought and labored and suf- 
fered for poor, lost men — just as we have seen Him doing. Such is 
His concern that He would do all this for even one wanderer. And 
when even one such is found and is brought back to serve Him, He 
is glad. He is willing to toil, to suffer, to endure any burden for the 
sake of the lowly ones He calls His sheep." 

J 'You remember the hymn," said Mrs. Reed, "which tells of the 
ninety and nine which were safe in the fold while one had gone 
astray. For this lost sheep the Shepherd went so far and worked 
so hard, you remember." 

"Oh! yes, mamma!" shouted the girls; "and won't you sing it 
for us?" 

" With pleasure," responded Mrs. Reed, stepping to the organ, 
where she sang those beautiful words : 

" There were ninety and nine that safely lay 

In the shelter of the fold ; 
But one was out on the hills away, 

Far off from the gates of gold. 
Away on the mountain they heard it cry — 
Sick and helpless and ready to die." 

When Mrs. Reed ceased singing, Grandpa repeated from Psalm 
xxiii these words : 

" The Lord is my Shepherd ; I shall not want. He maketh me to 
lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters; 
He restoreth my soul ; He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness 
for His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the 
shadow of death, I will fear no evil : for Thou art with me ; Thy rod 
and Thy staff they comfort me." 




BRINGING BACK THE LOST ONE 



374 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



SCATTERING SEED; 

OivEVIL AMONG THE GOOD. 



" '"" T ""^HOSE talks of Jesus about shepherds and sheep must have 
been very interesting to the people who knew so much 
-*- about them," said Mary. 

"Yes," answered Grandpa, "interesting and useful too. Jesus 
always tried to make His lessons useful as well as attractive. He 
took hold on what was familiar to the people, and used that to make 
truth plainer. Many who heard Him were farmers. They knew all 
about sowing seed as it was then done. To teach them Jesus once 
represented Himself as a farmer sowing seed. His words were the 
seed; He Himself scattered, or sowed it as He taught." 

"That was His parable of the Sower, wasn't it?" asked Mary. 
"That was our Sunday-school lesson one day.*' 

" Yes," answered Grandpa. "In Matthew xiii Jesus tells of a sower 
who went out to sow. As he sowed, some seed fell on the path, or 
road, where the soil was trampled hard and the seed could not sink 
into it, but lay exposed on its surface, to be trodden under foot, or 
to be carried off by birds. This. He said, was like people who listen 
to the truth, but are careless about it. Then Satan, like a bird which 
follows the sower, catches away the seed, or some wicked thought or 
act crushes out the good thought, and it is lost." 

" That's like a boy who don't attend to his lessons in school — he 
never gets up." 

"That's it exactly, Charley," said Grandpa; "and one who does 
not attend to the Lord's lessons will never get up either. The Lord 
also said that some seed fell in stony places, where there was not 




SCATTERINC THE SEED. 



876 GRANDPA GOODH/N'S STORIES. 



much soil. This sprouted up quickly and seemed very promising 
but no sooner did the hot summer sun shine on it than it was scorched 
and died. This, He said, was like people who hear the truth and 
seem to be delighted with it, but who don't hold out. They soon 
grow weary of doing well, and give it up." 

"That's like lots of girls in our school," said Carrie. "They get 
promoted or begin a new study, and they work as if they would stand 
No. i forever, but in a few weeks they fall off and are at the tail of 
the class." 

"A new broom sweeps clean," added Mrs. Reed, the children 
readily catching the point of the old proverb. 

" The true way," said Grandpa, " is to begin sweeping clean and 
to keep on doing so. The stony-ground hearers began, but did 
not keep on. Many such persons are in the world. Other seed, 
Jesus said, fell among thorns, and by and by, as both thorns and 
wheat grew, the thorns became rank and choked out the wheat. 
This is like people who attempt to be good and bad at the same time. 
They do some good, but they allow some evil. This won't succeed. 
The bad will grow faster and ranker, and will surely choke out the 
gfood." 

" That's what ails the man who lives back of our store," said Mary. 
"He joined a temperance society and he joined church, but he kept 
on drinking just a little, as he said, and now he's a real drunkard, 
worse than he was before." 

" You have hit a good illustration. If Henry had gone wholly into 
temperance or the church work, he would have done well; but he 
went into the bar-room also. His was a case of good seed among 
thorns, and the good seed was choked out." 

" But, Grandpa, did none of the seed come to a good end ?" asked 
Carrie, with a tone of disappointment. " It seems as if bad gets the 
best of it every time." 

"After telling of the three kinds of people we have talked of, Jesus 
says, Some fell upon good ground, and brought forth fruit, some forty 



SCATTERING SEED. 377 



fold, some sixty fold, some a hundred fold. There is always a great 
deal opposing the good. Much good work and many good words 
eome to nought, but some good results will always follow faithful 
work. Some seed will spring up and bear fruit. Depend upon it, 

" Thou canst not toil in vain ; 

Cold, heat, and moist and dry, 
Shall foster and mature the grain 
For garners in the sky." 

" But. Grandpa, isn't there such a thing as sowing bad seed?" asked 
Mary. 

" Alas ! yes, and a plenty of it too. Jesus explained this in the 
parable of the tares." 

"Tares ! and what are tares?" asked Carrie. "About tearing my 
dresses I know more than I want to, but those are not the tares 
you mean " 

" No, I mean t-a-r-e-s, a bad weed which grows very fast. When 
it first sprouts, it looks very much like wheat. Its grain also looks 
l?ke wheat, but it is very unwholesome. In the parable of the tares 
Jesus tells of a man who sowed good seed in his field. But he had a 
mean enemy, who, watching his chance, stole out one night and sowed 
tares everywhere through the sprouting wheat. Nobody suspected 
any wrong until the tares began to grow rank and tall above the 
wheat. Then everybody was surprised to see so much bad. But 
the owner knew how it was. He understood it all, and said, An 
enemy hath done this." 

" And is that the way Jesus accounts for the bad that is in the 
world'" 

" For much of it, Mary. The enemies who do this evil work are 
Satan and his friends. He goes slily, as if by night, and in the good 
soil of children's hearts and minds, and in those of older people, too, 
he scatters all manner of vile seed. Parents and teachers little sus- 
pect what has been done until they are surprised by seeing a rank 



378 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



growth of evil. Satan has been there, or some of his helpers. The 
enemy of all good has done it." 

"But can't Jesus stop this mean work?" asked Carrie. "He 
surely is able to do so." 

" He commands us to watch against it, and to give Satan no chance 
to do his mischief. He promises His help while we watch and fight 
this enemy, and He has assured us that by and by Satan and his 
helpers shall be overthrown and all their work shall be rooted out." 
" But why don't Jesus root it out now and be done witii it?" asked 
Mary. 

"The servants of the man whose field was sown with tares asked 
the same question. They wanted to go right out and root up every 
tare, but the master said, No, lest they should root up the wheat also. 
So in this world the Lord sees some benefits from allowing - evil and 
good to remain for the time side by side. But the harvest time came. 
The tares were gathered and burned and the wheat was saved. So 
shall it be in the end of the world. The evil shall be destroyed, the 
good shall be preserved." 

" Well, I don't want to be any tare," said Charley, in an emphatic 
tone. "I'm for the wheat every time." 

As Charley's words ended, his mother very gently began to sing 
the words: ,. 

" Sowing the seed by the daylight fair, 

Sowing the seed by the noon-day glare, 

Sowing the seed by the fading light, 

Sowing the seed in the solemn night ; 

Oh ! what shall the harvest be ? 

Oh ! what shall the harvest be?" 

The children quietly gathered about her, joining in the chorus, 
and so the entire hymn was sung. 




DOING MISCHIEF. 



380 



GRANDPA GOOu IVJN'S STORIES. 



WONDERS OF YEAST; 

Or, THE POWER OF INFLUENCE. 



G 1 



RANDPA, there's an old saying, Give the devil his due," 
said Mary. " It's not very pretty to use, but I don't mean 
it in any wicked way. But is it fair to charge the devil, 
or Satan, with all the wrong done in the world ?" 

" By no means, my dear. If he were responsible for it all, why 
should any of us be condemned for o'.ir misdeeds? The fact is, we 
are influenced by other persons, and we influence ourselves, too, for 
good or for evil by the thoughts we allow and by the surroundings 
we choose." 

" But how can we help having evil thoughts and feelings or meet- 
ing with bad company sometimes ?" asked Carrie. " If I could 
always be at home I could do well enough, so far as company is 
concerned; but at school, in the street, almost everywhere, there are 
bad people and I cannot keep clear of them." 

" An old writer says, We cannot prevent evil birds from flying 
over our heads, but we can keep them from building nests in our 
hair." 

" Oh ! I see, Grandpa," laughed Carrie. " Evil thoughts and com- 
panions will come and I can't help that, but I can refuse to entertain 
them. That's what I try to do, and I mean to all the more, since I 
understand it better. They may fly over my head, but they shall not 
make nests in my hair." 

" Nor mine," said Charley, rubbing his own short crop. " They 
wouldn't do much in my stubble-field. Carrie's curls would be a 
heap better for them." 



WONDERS OF YEAST. 381 



" This same idea Jesus urged when He said to His disciples, Watch 
ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. Temptation is abundant 
and everybody will feel its power. Jesus Himself was tempted; it 
is said H^ was tempted in all points like as we are. To be tempted 
is not wrong. He was sinless, though He was tempted. To enter 
into temptation is the wrong. We must watch and pray against that." 

" Oh ! I see," responded Carrie. " Entering in is letting the birds 
build nests — isn't it ?" 

" Yes ; and that is the sin which we must carefully avoid. Resist 
temptation ; do not yield." 

" That's clear to me now," said Mary. " I see just where I must 
take my stand." 

" The Lord taught a lesson on this subject in a very pretty way," 
continued Grandpa. " He took hold on a simple thing that every- 
body understood — that is, the leavening or raising of bread, as it was 
then done in every house." 

"What! setting bread to get light? Did Jesus talk about such 
every-day things as that?" 

" Yes, Mary. In the parable of the Leaven He said: The kingdom 
of heaven is like unto leaven which a woman took and hid in three 
measures of meal till the whole was leavened." 

"Didn't He explain any more what He meant? — I don't just see 
His meaning," asked Carrie. 

" No ; and for that reason good men have had different ideas as 
to just what He did mean. But see how the case stood. Women 
then had little mills with which they ground the meal as they needed 
it. They would spread a clean cloth on the floor ; place their mill- 
ston 2s on it ; put in the grain ; turn the stones by hand ; gather up 
the meal which worked out at the edges of the stones ; put it into a 
pot or dish to mix it ; add their leaven or yeast ; let it raise enough, 
and then bake it." 

"Why, that's the way we do, only we don't grind our own meal," 
said Mary. 



382 GRANDPA GOOD WIN* S S'J ON U.S. 



" They did it then as many people now grind their own coffee. 
The mill-stones were two round, flat stones laid one upon the other 
The top stone had a hole at the middle into which the -rain v 
poured ; it aiso had an upright handle by which it was ti:;n !. 'I 
grain was ground fine between the stones and the m< al \\ i it 

at the edges, read) - for use after it had been put through a fine 
sieve." 

" I'm glad we don't have such trouble nowadays," said Mar)'. 
" But when meal is mixed and yeast or leaven is put into it, the whole 
of the dough gets light. What did Jesus mean by saying the king- 
dom of heaven was like that ?" 

" He meant that good influences or bad influences were like yeast. 
They would affect any boy or girl, man or woman, into whom they 
entered. The whole lump — be it a child, a man, or a nation — feels 
the power of good or of evil as a lump of dough feels the yeast." 

"Oh! I see !" exclaimed Carrie. "And that's another way that 
evil comes into the world — isn't it? One bad man influences an- 
other." 

"Yes ; as Solomon says, One sinner destroyeth much good. On 
the other hand, one righteous person does much good. We are all 
like yeast; we influence those about us for good or for evil; we raise 
them or* sink, them." 

"And they who are about us influence us aiso," added Mrs. Reed. 

"And our own thoughts influence us, too," added Mar)-. 

"Dear me! we are all a set of yeast-cakes — aren't we?" said 
Charley, with his shrug of the shoulders and his thrust of his hands 
into the pockets of his trousers. 

"I read," said Mary, "of a young lady whose father refused her 
permission to go to a public ball. She urged that it would not hurt 
her. He picked up a dead coal from the fire and told her to take 
it, saying, It won't hurt you. No. said she, but it will soil my hands 
So, said he, if not hurt by the ball you may still be soiled." 

"A good illustration of the power ofinfluer.ee," said Grandpa. 




THE WONDERS OF YEAST. 



384 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

VINES AND FRUIT TREES; 

Or, SHALL WE CUT IT DOWN? 



" " DON'T wonder everybody wanted to hear Jesus preach and 
teach," said Carrie. " He made sermons from sheepfolds, from 

*- the fields, and the seeds, and everybody could understand what 
He meant." 

•He did make everything very clear," answered Grandpa, "and 
that is why it is said, The common people heard Him gladly. They 
were not educated, and could not understand most of their teachers ; 
but Jesus they could understand, He made everything plain, so they 
loved to hear Him." 

" Tell us about some other talks of His," added Charley. " I feel 
like the common people did — I'm glad to hear Him." 

" One day Jesus and His disciples were together, and He began 
to talk about vines. Why He spoke of vines we do not know, but 
probably over the door of the room where they sat there were vines. 
As they entered they may have noticed the fruit or the branches, 
and so had this subject in mind. He began by saying, I am the vine, 
my Father is the husbandman or vine-dresser, ye are the branches. 
So He caught every man's attention. All who were present and 
heard Him began wondering why they were called branches, and 
why He called Himself a vine." 

"And why did He do it, Grandpa? That was a queer way to 
begin. I want to know what He meant," exclaimed Mar)-. 

"So the disciples did, and they listened, as you will. His first les- 
son from the vine was that His followers, if really true disciples, 
would be to Him as branches are to a vine. He would support 




LESSONS FROM THE VINE. 



880 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



and nourish them and they would bear fruit— yes, good fruit, and 
plenty of it." 

" What do you mean by their bearing fruit?" asked Canie. " I'm 
not sure I understand." 

" It is the nature of a grape-vine to produce grapes, so it is the 
nature of true disciples to produce good deeds. Good deeds are 
the true fruit of Christ, the vine, and of Christians, the branches; 
as grapes are the true fruit of grape-vines." 

" I hanks, Grandpa; I see now very planly what you mean," said 
Carrie. 

"Not to do these good works is to prove that you are no real 
branch of Christ. Branches without fruit are dead branches. These 
God takes away, and Jesus says they wither and are burned. They 
may be people who talk about Christ and are members of the 
church, but unless they live as Jesus lived, they are not true 
branches." 

" But, Grandpa, how can one do these good things ? Jt is not easy. 
I'm sure I try very hard, but I'm not half as good a girl as I want to 
be." 

" Ah, Carrie, the best things always cost most. It is not easy to 
get them. But -J^sus said, He that abideth in me and I in him,' the 
same bringeth forth much fruit." 

"What does abide in Him mean ?" asked Charley. 
^ "It means to be with Him, under His care, and in His ways all the 
time, so that you really abide or live with Jesus every moment," an- 
swered Grandpa. 

"As if you lived in the same house, ate at the same table, went ic 
the same school and church, did the same things, and was with Him 
all the time." 

'That is it, Mary. If we live in that way, we will abide in Him 
and bear much fruit. This plentiful fruit-bearing pleases Jesus and 
honors God." 

" But suppose you don't do it, then what, Grandpa ?" asked Charley. 




SHALL WE CUT IT DOWN? 



388 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



"I'll tell you. In the thirteenth chapter of Luke Jesus tells of a 
man who raised vines and fruit. In his garden he planted a fig tree, 
and took o-ood care of it until the time came for it to bear fruit. He 
then went to it and looked for figs, but not a fig was to be seen. 
Another year he went again, but it brought no better result, and sthl 
another year, and yet no fruit. Then he called his head workman 
and said, These three years I come seeking fruit on this fig-tree, and 
find none ; cut it down ; why cumbereth it the ground ?" 

" Served it right," exclaimed Charley. " It had a good chance, but 
it was good for nothing." 

" Have not you, my boy, had a good chance too, and have you 
borne the fruit Jesus wanted? He gave you life, health, mind, 
knowledge, and many other good things, but has He found the fruit 
He wants ?" 

Charley was silent for a moment ; then looking up with a bright 
smile, he said, "I haven't been just the boy I should have been, but 
I'll try again." 

" The Lord is willing we should try again, for though the master 
said, Cut it down, yet when his man suggested another year of trial, 
he was willing to allow it; but if that year failed to bring the fruit, 
then the tree was to come down sure." 

" And must I come down next year sure, if I'm not a better boy, 
Grandpa?" 

"That is not for me to say, Charley; but this I can say: Be a true, 
frank, noble, God-fearing boy. and you will never come down : that 



is sure !" 



" Well, that's worth trying for," answered he, frankly, " if for no 
other reason, to make me like you, Grandpa." 



SEEKING IN EARNEST. 389 



SEEKING IN EARNEST: 

Or, DETERMINED TO WIN. 



" S ^ARRIE and I have been talking over that idea of abiding in 
Christ, and we are both going to try our best to do it." 
^ — ' " That's a good resolve, Mary. You will need courage 
and effort to come up to the mark, but earnest seekers find great 
encouragement in the Bible. Those who are determined to find are 
never disappointed." 

"Why, yes," said Carrie, "a golden text I once learned says, Ask, 
and ye shall receive ; seek, and ye shali find ; knock, and it shall be 
opened unto you." 

" In Matthew xiii, Jesus tells of two earnest seekers. One found 
a great treasure hid in a field. It may mean that what he found there 
was silver or gold in the rock, hidden there by nature, or it may mean 
other valuables, hidden there for safe-keeping by persons who after- 
ward lost trace of the spot or died without telling of it ; at any rate, 
this man found it. Probably he was too honest to steal the treasure, 
or he may have been unable to get it away in safety if he should steal 
it, so he decided to buy the field, treasure and all ; then he would 
have it as his own. The price was high, but he was determined ; so 
he sold all that he had, and, with the money thus secured, he bought 
the field." 

" Good for him !" exclaimed Charley. " He was clear grit, wasn't 
he?" 

" Yes, he was an earnest seeker, and what he sought he found. 
That is what the Lord meant to teach when He told of this man. 
He told of another man also who was an earnest seeker. He was 
25 




SEEKING FOR TREASURES. 




BARGAINING FOR A SPLENDID JEWEL. 



392 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

a dealer in precious stones, and traveled everywhere seeking the 
finest gems, especially pearls. These grow in the shells of large 
oysters. In warm climates fishermen dive for them and seek them 
very carefully at the bottom of the sea. A large pearl will make a 
fortune for its finder. It is said — 

"There are two moments in the diver's life: 
One when, a beggar, he prepares to plunge; 
Then when, a prince, he rises with his pearl." 

"Why, are pearls so valuable as that?" asked Mary. "I know 
they are much admired and very beautiful, but I did not know they 
cost much." 

" Why, yes. Small pearls are worth from fifty cents to three dol- 
lars each ; single fine pearls cost from five dollars upward ; pearl 
necklaces cost from five hundred dollars to fifteen thousand dollars. 
A single pearl, found in a South American river, sold in Paris in 
1858 for two thousand dollars. A famous pearl, owned by Sir 
Thomas Gresham, of England, was valued at seventy-five thousand 
dollars ; one, owned by the crown of Spain, was valued at one hun- 
dred and fifty thousand dollars ; while history tells that Cleopatra, 
on a mere banter, destroyed her pearl ear-drops, which were valued 
at four hundred thousand dollars." 

"Heigh ho!" shouted Charley; "I think a diver that gets one of 
those pearls makes his fortune sure enough." 

" The man of whom Jesus was telling met a pearl-fisher, most likely 
a Malay, who had a pearl of great size and immense value. This 
pearl the man wanted. He offered what money he had by him, but 
it was not enough. He then sold all his other possessions, turned 
into money everything he owned, and handed it over for this one 
great pearl. You see how earnest he was." 

"Yes," replied Carrie, "and earnest for that one pearl. No other 
suited him. He was bound to have that one. But why was he so 
persistent for that particular pearl ?" 



SEEKING IN EARNEST. 393 



" He may have had an order from his King or from a rich customer 
for just such a pearl as this ; or he may have felt sure that he could 
make more money from this than from any other. Many reasons 
can easily be given for his earnestness in getting this gem rather 
than any other." 

" That's so," assented Carrie. " Now tell us of another seeker." 

" Another earnest seeker is told about in Luke xv. She had lost 
a piece of money in her house, but she could not find it by any ordi- 
nary seeking. Her house was not well lighted. There were dark 
corners and crannies here and there ; so she lit a lamp, took her 
broom, and swept carefully everywhere, till at last she found it. She 
meant business, she was determined to find that piece of money, and 
find it she did." 

" Who are meant by these earnest seekers ?" inquired Mary. 
" Do they mean Jesus or us, or who is meant?" 

" They mean any earnest seeker. But who was ever more earnest 
than Jesus ? You remember His reference to the shepherd who 
sought the sheep until he found it. That is always His way of work- 
ing; He seeks hidden treasure, whatever it may be, until He finds 
it; He seeks rare pearls, whatever this may mean, until He finds 
them ; He seeks lost coins, however this be understood, until they 
are secured. Had not He worked in this spirit He would never 
have done so much for us." 

"Why, that's the idea in a hymn I heard good old Mrs. Brown 
singing when I was there yesterday. She sang : 

'Jesus sought me when a stranger, 

Wandering from the fold of God ; 
He to save my soul from danger 
Interposed His Precious Blood.' " 

"That's it, exactly," responded Grandpa. He was the model 
seeker of the world, and in all good efforts we will do well to imi- 
tate Him. Whenever you are pursuing a good object, remember 



304 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

him who sought the hidden treasure, him who sought the pearl o! 
great price, and her who sought the lost piece of money." 

" Why, she reminds me of a story my teacher told," said Mary. 
** A man working in his barn lost some money. He knew he had it 
after he entered the barn arm that it was lost before he left, so, said 
he, I will find that money if I move every straw. At the search he 
went in this spirit. In a little while he came out of the barn shout- 
ing to his wife that it was found. She then turned the matter back 
on him, saying, When you search for the way of eternal life as you 
have searched for that money, you will be just as sure to find it and 
just as glad when it is found." 

" I knew a little girl," chimed in Carrie, who caught the story- 
telling fever, " who was very good at finding anything her mother 
wanted. When on a hunting errand she spurred herself every little 
while by saying, It must be somewhere ; It must be somewhere." 

" Very good," said Grandpa. " Earnest seekers are sure finders, 
as a rule. Each of you who means to seek a life more full of good 
fruits, remember the text Carrie quoted, Seek, and ye shall find." 

"And remember my man in the barn," added Mary. 

"And my little girl who hunted," added Carrie. 

" And my example," added Charley, as he strutted from the room 
amid roars of laughter from all the party. 




SEARCHING FOR THE LOST COIN. 



396 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

A ROYAL WELCOME; 

Or, THE WANDERER HOME AGAIN. 



"1"T seems to me," said Mary, opening the conversation, as the 

happy home party met again, " that God can hardly welcome 

-*■ all who seek Him, even though they do it earnestly. Some 

wander so far and sin so terribly that it seems impossible for them 

to be forgiven." 

" It does indeed seem impossible that all should receive forgive- 
ness," answered Grandpa. " Some go so far astray and are so per- 
sistent in wrong that they seem to be beyond hope. And yet even, 
such ay be blessed, as is shown in the story of the Prodigal Son." 

" Tell us about that, Grandpa, please," said Mary. " I know some- 
thing about it, but I want to know more." 

"Well, Jesus told of a man who had two sons. One day the 
younger asked his father to give him all the money and other treas- 
ures that would become his when the father should die." 

" That was rather rough !" exclaimed Charley. " He wasn't will- 
ing to wait for his father to die, but wanted his share right off! I'd 
have sent him off with a flea in his ear if I'd been his father." 

" He was just like most people," said Grandpa. " He thought he 
could do for himself and in his own way better than any one could 
do for him. God lets people try for themselves and do without Him 
if they can, and so this father did. He gave the young man his 
share of everything, and without fear of the future, the young man 
gathered all together and off he went into a far country — there to be 
free from father and friends and to do for himself precisely as he 
might please." 



A ROYAL WELCOME. 397 

"That was very silly!" exclaimed Carrie. "He had better stayed 
near home, so that he could have help in sickness or trouble." 

" But that is just the way people do with God. He can advise and 
help in every trouble, but they get just as far from Him as they can 
instead of clinging close to Him." 

" Why, Grandpa, I never thought of it in that way ! — but it is so. 
That is the way people do with God." 

"When this young man reached that distant country he did not 
regard his father's example of industry and saving, but he went into 
all sorts of foolishness, spending money with worthless people and 
in wicked ways, until every penny was spent. Then his associates 
dropped him. .They were not true friends; they kept his company 
for no other purpose than to get his money or to help him spend it. 
When it was gone they cared no more for him and he began to be 
in want. Even then he did not want to go back to his father ; he 
was not ready to confess his wrong and ask forgiveness, but he still 
tried to do for himself. He went and hired out to a man who raised 
hogs, and this man sent him into the fields to look after the pigs." 

"What a horrid business !" exclaimed both the girls. 

"Especially," said Grandpa, " for a rich young man ; and one, too, 
who, being a Jew, had been taught to regard hogs as the vilest of 
beasts, with which no pure man could have anything to do. To 
make matters worse for him, there was famine in the land at that 
time ; so the miserable youth became so hungry that he was glad to 
eat food that was meant for the pigs. And yet no man pitied him 
or gave him better victuals. In this deep sorrow he began to think 
of his own foolish actions ; he was sure the very servants in his 
father's house were better off than he ; they had bread — they had 
enough of it and to spare — while he was actually starving. At last, 
unable to stand it any longer, he decided to go back home and ask 
for a servant's place." 

" That was humble," said Mary ; " all the pride was out of him by 
that time — wasn't it, Grandpa?" 



A ROYAL WELCOME. 399 

" Yes ; and well it might be. He had made a miserable failure ; 
he had shown himself very foolish and quite incompetent to take 
care of himself. But he started for home, thinking over what he 
would say when he should meet his dear, good father. On he 
trudged — tired, faint, hungry, ragged, penitent. At home everybody 
was in sorrow ; they had heard nothing from him and they mourned 
him as one lost or, possibly, dead. While they were grieving after 
this fashion he drew near. He was a pitiable looking lad, but when 
his father saw him he gave a royal welcome to the boy ; he ran to 
meet him, threw his arms about him, kissed him, would not listen to 
his proposal to become a servant, checked his expressions of peni- 
tence, and assured him that he was heartily welcome to his home 
again." 

"That was splendid!" exclaimed Carrie. "He had been so fool- 
ish and had done so badly ! It was wonderful that his father received 
him at all." 

" It was. But he received him grandly," replied Grandpa ; " he 
put new clothes on him, new shoes, a new ring, ordered a good din- 
ner, and everybody began to have a merry time. So Jesus taught 
about the welcome that awaits those who seek God." 

" But, Grandpa, doesn't it encourage people to go on sinning if 
God will take them back so easily and serve them so well ?" 

"Turn, Mary, to Isaiah lv, 6, and read your own answer." 

Mary turned and read : " Seek ye the Lord while He may be 
found, call ye upon Him while He is near." To this Grandpa added 
a little illustration in these words : 

" I once read of a very wicked man who in his last sickness said, 
One word in the Bible keeps me from peace. It is the word while. 
He pointed to that text and said, While He could be found I was not 
ready ; now I am ready and He cannot be found. Do not trifle with 
God ; there may be a time when wanderers cannot come home." 



400 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

TOO LATE; 
Or, REJECTED AT THE DOOR. 



■ T" AST night we were dwelling on the fact that the Lord might 

not always be found," said Grandpa, as the evening party 
-* — ' gathered about him. " It is a very solemn fact, and I trust 
you will not overlook it." 

" No danger of my overlooking it," replied Carrie. " I have 
thought it over and over to-day. But is there really any great dan- 
ger that anybody will seek the Lord in earnest and be too late for 
His blessing ?" 

"There certainly is great danger," answered Grandpa; "and that^. 
too, though He is so kind. But I will tell you one of His own par- 
ables and you may judge for yourselves. In Matthew xxv is the 
story of ten young girls who went to attend the wedding of one of 
their friends." 

" It is the parable of the Ten Virgins — is it not, Grandpa ?" 

" Yes, Mary ; that is its usual title." 

"What is a parable ?" asked Charley. 

" It is a story, not of something which actually did happen, but 
which is like something that actually does happen. So Jesus in this 
parable says the kingdom of heaven — that is, His own kingdom — 
is like to this case of ten virgins. He uses the well-known facts of 
a wedding festival in that day to make plain the less understood facts 
of His own kingdom." 

■ " How did they manage weddings where Jesus lived ?" asked 
Carrie. 

" In various ways, just as with us to-day. The ceremonies Jesus 



TOO LATE. 401 



describes were very common. The bridegroom, attended by his 
young men friends, went to the house of the bride to claim her. The 
marriage was not by any ceremony and promises, as with us, but the 
.act of taking the bride from her own home was the final step in the 
marriage. Having received his bride, the procession started for his 
vnew home. This took place usually about midnight, torches being 
borne by attendants and musicians leading the company. At some 
convenient point on the way the young lady friends of the parties 
came out to meet the procession, all of them dressed in white and 
carrying torches or lamps. Then the party marched on joyously to 
the new home, where festivity and feasting continued all night, and 
in some cases for many days, as the parties might please, and were 
able to pay." 

" Oh ! now I see," said Mary, " what many things in that parable 
-.mean. The virgins were these young girl friends waiting on the 
way at somebody's house, expecting to join the procession when it 
came and go with that happy party to the bride's new home and 
.have a orood time." 

"Exactly," added Grandpa; "and that they should sleep or doze 
"while waiting for the procession was not strange. When the pro- 
cession drew near, those watching for it would call out, as the par- 
able says, Behold, the bridegroom cometh ! — go ye out to meet him. 
Then there would be hurried preparation ; lighting the lamps, adjust- 
ing the dresses, and getting into order. You see how natural all 
this would be." 

" And it was at that last moment," said Mary, " that five of the vir- 
gins found their lamps would not burn." 

" I never could see," added Carrie, " why the other girls did not 
^pare them a little oil. It was mean to refuse them and send them 
at that hour to wake up some shop-keeper, if indeed they could find 
one, and buy for themselves." 

"But remember, Carrie," replied Grandpa, "Jesus meant to teach 
ihat preparation for entrance into His kingdom was not a thing that 



402 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



one person could give another ; each must get it for himself. And 
then the giving of the oil was not so easy either. Those girls did 
not go around with quart cans in their hands, as when people now 
go to the store for kerosene. The lamp was a small, shoe-shaped 
vessel, the point or toe-end being open for the wick to project. The 
entire body of the shoe was filled with wick. On this wick small 
quantities of oil were poured. This would be drawn by attraction to 
the flame at the toe-end and keep it bright. A neat little bottle of 
oil was carried by each girl, from which a fresh supply was poured 
into the lamp as the flame grew dim." 

" Now I see," said Mary, " how it was that the oil did not slop over 
and spill on their dresses. The wick was like a sponge filled with 
oil, and as it grew dry more oil was poured on, but never enough to 
slop over." 

" You have it exactly, Mary. The five foolish virgins had not filled 
their little oil-bottles and so could not wet the wick and light up for 
the procession. If they had borrowed and lighted up for the moment, 
they would soon have needed more ; so it was not so mean, after all, 
that they were refused by the others — was it, Carrie ?" 

" No ; but I'm sorry for them all the same." 

"These foolish virgins were not ready when the procession came. 
That was their one chance and they missed it. They hurried off and 
bought some oil ; but the wedding party had passed by. They hur- 
ried after it through the dark streets, but it had entered the house; 
the door was shut and the festivities had begun. They knock, they 
call ; but the master of the house does not know them ; he comes to 
the wicket in his gateway, but he does not know that these are part 
of the proper company, and so does not admit them. All the pre- 
pared guests were already there ; so he sends these poor belated 
girls away." 

"That was too bad!" said Carrie, very sadly ; "but I discovered 
yesterday that railroad trains don't wait for late people, and I don't 
see why the Lord should do so either." 




TOO LATE; OR, THE FOOLISH VIRGINS. 



404 • GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" He does wait patiently for all ; but He will permit no one to 
trifle with His grace," answered Grandpa, "There comes a time 
when the door will be shut — when entrance to the feast spread by 
His love will be refused. I think your mother can sing us a sacred 
song which represents the interview of those disappointed girls with 
the gate-keeper." 

"Willingly," answered Mrs. Reed, who then sang: 

" Late, late, so late ! and dark the night and chill; 
Late, late, so late ! — but we can enter still ; 
No light had we; for that we do repent, 
And, learning this, the Bridegroom will relent. 

"Too late, too late ! ye cannot enter now. 

" No light — so late ! and dark and chill the night ; 
Oh ! let us in, that we may find the light; 
Oh ! let us in, that we may find the light. 

" Too late, too late ! ye cannot enter now ; 
No, no ! — too late ! — ye cannot enter now. 

" Have we not heard the Bridegroom is so sweet? — 
Oh ! let us in, that we may kiss His feet ; 
Oh ! let us in, oh ! let us in, 
Oh ! let us in, though late, to kiss His feet. 

" Too late, too late ! ye cannot enter now." 

As the singing ceased not a word was said for some moments 
when Grandpa closed the evening's chat by saying: "Let us all be 
ready in good time." 



GENEROSITY ABUSED. 405 



GENEROSITY ABUSED; 

Or, FORGIVENESS FOR THE FORGIVING. 



'•' "V" CAN'T help thinking," began Carrie, with some eagerness, 
" that those girls of whom we talked last night were not just 

-"- as kind to each other as they might have been. It seems very 
much as though they looked out for No. i, caring not what came of 
the hindmost." 

" The point at which their refusal to help came," said Grandpa, 
" was not the point where kindness could avail ; it was too late then. 
But we do not know what had taken place earlier. Perhaps the wise 
virgins had been urging the others to get ready in time. Certainly 
wise followers of Jesus urge other persons so to do. Kindness to 
one another is one of the lessons Jesus urged most strongly. Do 
you remember the parable of the Unmerciful Servant?" 

None of the children were sure about it, but all urged Grandpa to 
tell them the story — so he began : 

"There once was a great and rich King who called all the people 
who did business for him to come and render account for all they 
had been doing. One after another reported, and at last came one 
who was fearfully in his debt. He owed the King ten thousand 
talents, a sum so great that he could never hope to pay it. It is as 
if he owed millions and millions of dollars." 

"What did he owe so much for?" asked Charley, anxious to get 
at the bottom facts of the business. 

" I don't know," said Grandpa, frankly. " Probably no person ever 
did owe so much. This is a parable, you know — a story not true in 
itself, but like something that is true." 
26 



406 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



•' Well, what is it like then ? Who is like a man that owes so mucV 
money ?" pressed the boy. 

" You are, Charley, and I am. We owe the Lord, our great King 
far more than we can ever pay. He gives us everything, and what 
do we give Him ? Nothing worth naming." 

" That's so," exclaimed Charley ; " but how did the man fix it with 
the King?" 

" He had nothing to pay ; so the King commanded that the man, 
his wife, and his children, all should be sold as slaves, and that their 
goods also be sold to pay the debt as far as possible." 

" That was awful !" exclaimed Carrie. 

" So the man thought ; for while the officer held him he fell down 
on his knees before the King, begging him to have patience, and 
promising to pay him all. And then what, think you, the King did ? 
He pitied the man, ordered them to let him go, and actually forgave 
all the debt." 

" That was splendid, wasn't it? I love that King for being so kind," 
said Carrie. 

" That King, you know, means Christ. That is the way He forgives 
us when we come in our poverty and sorrow to Him." 

"That is just like Him. He always is so good," continued Carrie. 
" He is kind even if those girls were not so good as they might have 
been to their companions." 

" Yes, and He means that those whom He forgives shall be kind 
also, for notice how He goes on with His parable in Matthew xviii. 
This man, who had been forgiven so much, went out, and finding a 
man who owed him a hundred pence, a mere trifle, he demanded 
that it be paid on the spot. This man also fell on his knees and 
begged for time, promising to pay ever)' penny; but the hard-hearted 
creditor had him arrested and thrown into prison. At this the people 
were very sorry, so they went and told the King." 

" I'll bet he was mad," exclaimed Charley. 

" You are right," answered Grandpa, " though I should say indig- 




THE FORGIVING KING. 



406 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



nant rather than mad. He sent for the man, and having shown him 
how cruelly he had acted and how unlike his King he had been, he 
sent him to prison and to punishment until all that great debt he 
owed should be paid." 

" But," exclaimed Carrie, "I understood you to say the debt was so 
big it could never be paid." 

" So it was, and the sending to prison till it should be paid meant 
imprisonment for life. That was what it amounted to. He never 
could pay so much, especially when he was kept in prison." 

" Sorry for him and his family," said Carrie, with her usual flow of 
sympathy. 

" Served him right," exclaimed Charley, very decidedly. 

* Before we pass sentence on him, however," said Grandpa, " let 
Mary read the last verse of Matthew xviii. We may find that the 
shoe pinches us a little too." 

Mary turned to the verse designated and read : " So likewise shall 
my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive 
not every one his brother their trespasses." 

" That's for Carrie and Mary," said Charley, with an attempt to 
took serious. " It shows them how to treat their brother, don't it, 
Grandpa ?" 

" Yes, Charley, and it is for you also. It shows you how to treat 
your sisters and all the people of the world, for they are brothers in 
the sense Jesus means." 

"That's a close pinch," answered the boy. "I guess it w r on't do 
to hold grudges or stay mad with anybody, will it, Grandpa? Better 
forgive and forget." 

"No, my boy. If others injure you, leave them in God's hands; 
He will repay. Let us forgive and love one another, even as we wish 
the Lord to forgive us." 



WORK AND WA GES. 409 



WORK AND WAGES; 

Or, SETTLING WITH THE SERVANTS. 



n A FTER a day's thought on the talk of last evening," began 

/ \ Grandpa, " what do you think of the Lord's way of treating 
-*■ -*- those who are indebted to Him ?" 

" Why," responded Carrie, " I think He's just too good for any- 
thing. He is ever so kind and nice." 

" So do I," said Mary, and Charley added, " Me too." 

" But how about His sending that man to prison until the debt 
was paid, when there was no possible chance that he ever could pay 
it?" 

" He wasn't fit to be pardoned. He wouldn't forgive a little mite 
of a debt, though he had been forgiven so liberally," said Mary, the 
other children assenting to her view of the case. 

"In all His dealings with men,". resumed Grandpa, "the Lord 
leans toward kindness and love. David said, Like as a father 
pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him. John 
said, God is love. Lovingly and gladly He always does far better 
than we have any reason to expect. There is a parable of the labor- 
ers in the vineyard which is rather odd. It shows how the Lord is 
both just and generous. Would you like to hear about it as the 
topic of our evening's talk ?" • 

" Yes, yes, yes," came in from all sides of the merry group ; so 
Grandpa began : 

"There was once a rich man who owned a great vineyard. One 
day he needed some extra help. Possibly the vines needed pruning 
or tying up, or the ground may have needed loosening, or possibly 



U0 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

the grapes were just ready to be gathered. At any rate, he needed 
more help than he regularly had, so he went out to the market-place 
where men wanting work used to stand, and bargained with a lot of 
men to go to work. It was early in the morning, and they were each 
to get a penny for a full day's work." 

" Ha, ha !" laughed Charley. " One penny a day for a man ! Ha, 
ha ! big pay ! He'd get rich soon on that ! Why, I wouldn't pull 
weeds or pick strawberries for any such pay as that, / wouldn't. A 
dime a day and found is my lowest." 

" But how much is a penny?" asked Grandpa, when the boy had 
quieted down and the others had composed themselves after his out- 
burst. 

"A penny! Why, one cent, to be sure! Ha, ha!" answered the 
boy, with a jolly laugh. 

"No, Charley; an English penny is nearer two cents than one. 
But the denarius, which was the coin to be paid these men for the 
day's work, was about fifteen cents, more, even, than your exorbitant 
price. Then, too, prices at that time were not the same as now. 
Two pence was enough for the good Samaritan to pay a hotel-keeper 
for the care of the wounded man whom he left with him. So a penny, 
or a denarius, was not mean pay for a day's work. It would board 
a man at a hotel for a day or two. These laborers agreed to work 
for that price, and thought themselves lucky to get so good a job. 
The work went on, but the need for it was urgent; so about nine 
o'clock the owner went out for more help. He found another squad 
of men, and, promising to pay them what was right, set them, too, at 
work. At noon he went out again and hired others, and so at 
three o'clock. Ouittino--time was coming on, and the work needed 
was not finished, so at five o'clock still other men were hired and went 
1 to work for one hour only. At last the bell. rang. The shadow on 
the sun-dial showed that it was six o'clock. The men quit and came 
to the owner of the vineyard for their pay ; and what, suppose you, 
each received?" 



WORK AND WAGES. 411 



" He agreed to give the first lot a penny," answered Charley; "of 
course he stuck to that bargain." 

*' Of course; but what, do you suppose, the others received?" 
answered Grandpa. 

" In proportion, I suppose," answered Mary, Carrie adding, " To 
be sure; diat would be fair." 

" In settling with the men die one-hour workers came first, and 
every man was paid a denarius. Then came the three-hour men, 
and each received the same pay ; then the six-hour men, and after 
them the nine-hour men, and for every one of them there was a 
denarius." 

" They had a snap, as we boys say, especially the fellows that 
worked just an hour." 

"Yes; they went off, no doubt, chuckling over their unusual pay, 
and saying all manner of good things about their generous employer. 
Probably the next party was not quite so well pleased. They had 
worked longer, but were paid the same. So each party would come 
and go in its turn, each dissatisfied with its wages a little more than 
the one before it. At last came the all-day men, and they received 
every man a penny. Then there was a scene. They grumbled; 
they spoke out their complaint; and what, think you, they com- 
plained of?" 

" Why," answered Mary, promptly, " that they who had done so 
much more work got no more money." 

"But they got what they bargained for," replied Carrie. "That 
was their price." 

" If the old man — I mean the boss, the what-do-you-call-him who 
hired them — if he paid all he said he would they had no business to 
howl," declared Charley, very earnestly taking up the cause of the 
owner. 

" You have it," said Grandpa, " though not in the choicest terms. 
He stuck to his bargain ; kept his word ; fulfilled his promise ; was 
strictly honest with those men." 



412 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 

"Yes,'-' answered Mary, "but those other men received the same 
pay for less work." 

"That's because the old gentleman felt good. He was erenerous- 
that's what ailed him," answered Charley, seeming to get readily at 
the business side of the case. 

"That is the point," continued Grandpa. " He was just to the ail- 
day men, he was generous to the others." 

" Why wasn't he generous to the all-day men at the same time ?" 
insisted Mary. 

" He was, I doubt not, in the price paid — say enough to keep a 
sick man at a hotel for two days. He was just to all, was generous 
to all. But one thing he did that makes the case seem strange — he 
did as he pleased with his own money." 

"If he had done as / please," answered Mary, "I would feel better 
about it, I suppose." 

" Now, my dears," said Grandpa. " in leaving this parable what 
shall we remember as its lessons for us ?" 

"That the Lord wants us to work for Him all day, if possible; one 
hour, if better cannot be done," said Mrs. Reed. "For this reason 
we should begin in our youth." 

" That the Lord will pay us if we work for Him," answered Charley, 
as Grandpa looked to him for an answer. 

" That He will deal justly and generously with every one of us," 
said Carrie. 

" That He does with his own what He thinks best, whether I like 
it or no," added Mary. 

" Well told," added Grandpa, with one of his kindest smiles. " Be 
good workers for the Lord; He is a good paymaster. Trust Him 
to make all right." 




DISSATISFIED WITH THEIR WAGES. 



414 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

ANOINTING JESUS; 

Or, THE WORK OF TWO WOMEN. 



"1 " HAVE thought I would tell vou to-night about two strange acts 
done by two somewhat peculiar women." 
-*- " Oh ! do, Grandpa," exclaimed Mary. " I want to learn 
something that I may do by and by when I become a woman." 

" Both these women bore the same name you do ; they were 
Marys; the one Mary Magdalene, out of whom Jesus cast seven 
devils ; the other, Mary the sister of Lazarus, whom Jesus raised 
from the dead. The account of the first is in Luke vii, and though 
her name is not given there, yet it follows so closely in the next 
chapter that name and person are naturally linked together. This 
Mary had been a very wicked woman, and everybody where she lived 
knew it. Jesus was in that city one day and a rich man asked Him 
to his house to dinner. Jesus went, and though the man had invited 
Him he did not treat Him very nicely. He neither saluted Him 
with a kiss, gave Him water with which to wash His feet, nor oil to 
anoint His head, all of which were acts of common civility in that 
land." 

" How odd !" answered Carrie. " Why did they do those things ?" 
" Men even now kiss each other in that land, just as women kiss 
each other here. Sandals were worn instead of shoes ; these left the 
feet exposed ; so it was refreshing to have them washed after a long 
and dusty walk. Hats were not worn, but a folded cloth was thrown 
over the head; so an adjustment of the hair was also necessary. 
But none of these ordinary comforts were extended by this man, 
though Jesus was there as his guest." 



ANOINTING JESUS. 



415 



" I'd have taken my hat and gone oft",'' said Charley. " I wouldn't 
sail with such a crew as that But they didn't wear hats, you said," 

" But Jesus did not go off," answered Grandpa ; " He stayed and 
the dinner began. As they were eating, who should come in but 




" Behold, a woman . . . stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with 

tears." — Luke vii, 37, 38. 

this well-known woman, Mary Magdalene ; she came weeping, she 
came up behind Jesus as He reclined at the table, as was then the 
custom, and, kneeling down, she let her tears fall on His feet ; then 
she bent so low that her hair wiped His feet; then she kissed His 
feet over and over again." 



416 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" How sad and humble she was !" said Carrie. 

"She had with her a little flask of ointment, such as was used for 
the hair. This she opened and poured upon the feet of Jesus. While 
this was going on, the old Pharisee, who pretended to be entertaining 
Jesus, was thinking to himself that Jesus, if He really were a prophet, 
would know who this woman was and that He would not permit her 
to touch His feet even. Jesus knew the thoughts of His entertainer; 
so He began to tell him of two men, one of whom owed five hundred 
pence and the other fifty. They were both so poor that they could 
not pay their debts and their creditor forgave them fully. Which of 
them then, asked Jesus, suppose you loved him most?" 

" I should say the one to whom most was forgiven," answered 
Carrie. 

"'So the man answered, and Jesus approved the answer. Then 
Jesus reminded His entertainer how he had neglected the proper 
welcome to a guest, while this woman, in her profuse love, had 
washed His feet with tears, kissing them over and over and anoint- 
ing them. To the woman Jesus then said, Thy sins are forgiven, 
and bade her go in peace." 

"That was grand!" exclaimed Carrie. "The poor soul was so 
sorry for the wrong she had done. She loved Jesus with all her 
heart and wasn't ashamed to show it. I'm glad He forgave her and 
sent her home happy. That was just like Jesus to do that kind act, 
wasn't it?" 

"It was, indeed," said Grandpa. "A few days before the death of 
Jesus, He, with many others, was at a feast in Bethany, where Mar}-, 
the sister of Lazarus, lived. She loved Jesus very much, for He had 
been so good to her and her family. She wanted to do something 
for Him, but what to do she really did not know. Almost every- 
body has some little keepsake or treasure which they prize very 
highly. You each have such little treasures." 

"Why, yes," replied Mary, "I have a whole box full of treasures, 
such as they are. But I prize them very highly." 



ANOINTING JESUS. 



417 



" How big's your box?" asked Charley. 

" Bio- enough for all the treasures I have now, but I'll need a bigger 
one some day. But go on, please, Grandpa." 

" Mary had a beautiful box made of a sort of marble called ala- 




" Then took Mary a pound of- ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus."— 

John xii, 3. 

baster and filled with fragrant perfumed oil ; it was very valuable ; 
some at the feast said it was worth three hundred pence,. or a year's 
wages for a laboring man. Probably it had been the gift of some 
rich friend or an heirloom in the family. At any rate, it was the best 
thing Mary had, and she determined Jesus should have the best." 



418 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

"That was right. But I'm not sure that Jesus would care for a 
box of perfumery." 

"She knew that, too, Mary; so, instead of handing it to Jesus, she 
approached Him, broke open the box, and poured its contents on 
His head. The sweet odor filled the room, and everybody was sur- 
prised at Mary's act. Some of the disciples called it waste ; Judas 
thought it ought to have been sold and the proceeds given to the 
poor; so they all had their grumble or their growl or their sour look, 
till Jesus said, Why trouble ye the woman ? She hath wrought a 
good work upon me. He said, too, that wherever His gospel might 
be preached, her act should be told as a memorial of her, that is, as 
a means of reminding people of her noble, loving act." 

" It was a noble act," said Carrie. " What if it didn't do anybody 
good? It showed her love to Jesus, and ever since then other 
people have tried to be like her in showing love to Jesus ; that has 
done good, I'm sure." 

" Yes, Carrie. Her example has urged many good women, and 
men, too, to honor the Lord by all the means in their power. But 
Jesus added one remark that few understood; but it was full of mean- 
ing. She did it for my burial, said He. She did not know how soon 
He was to die. Less than a week He had to live. He knew, and 
it met His aching heart's desires. She did more than she dreamed 
of ; so let us do our best, and we may do more than we intend or 
expect." 

" I like that idea, Grandpa," said Carrie. " It is an encouragement 
to think that when we do the best we can, and ft may be that is not 
much, yet the Lord sees in it more than we do, and sets it to our 
credit." 

" Yes, He knows what our hearts aim to do. Our hands may fail, 
but He does not forget," 



THE TRIUMPHAL MARCH. 41P 

THE TRIUMPHAL MARCH; 

Or, A WORTHY WELCOME TO THE KING. 



" "T ~T THY didn't everybody love Jesus like those two Marys 
\/\/ ^^ Grandpa? He did so much good and made every- 
body so happy, I don't see how any person could help 
loving and serving Him." 

" To love Him, Carrie, and to serve Him as they did, would make 
many enemies. The rulers were all jealous lest Jesus should gain 
some advantage over them. Every person whom they saw disposed 
to honor Him they opposed and abused shamefully. Many for this 
reason were afraid to follow Jesus. But there was one time when 
the real feeling of the people did break loose and show itself; it was 
but a few days before His death. He had been stopping at Bethany, 
about two miles from Jerusalem, and early in the morning He started 
tor the city, followed by a company of His disciples. He usually 
walked, but this morning He sent two disciples across the valley to 
another village to get a colt for Him to ride. They brought it, and 
having thrown their outer garments across its back by way of a 
saddle, Jesus mounted and rode." 

" Why did He want to ride that day ?" asked Charley. " Was He 
tired, or was it hot?" 

" Probably neither in any unusual degree," answered Grandpa ; 
" but Jesus knew what was to come that day, and part of the pro- 
gramme was that He was to ride. Mary may read the explanations 
of His wish to ride. You will find it in Matthew xxi, 4, 5." 

Mary quickly found the verses and read: "All this was done that it 
might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye 



420 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and 
sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass." 

" Oh ! I see," said Mary ; " the prophets had described Christ as 
coming in that way, so Jesus obeyed the Scriptures, and did come in 
that way." 

"Yes, and as He rode the disciples who were with Him showed 
Him every honor. As they came near to Jerusalem, they were met 
by a great company of people who were on their way to find Jesus. 
These at once caught the idea of the party then with Him, and joined 
in praising Him as indeed the King whom the Jews for a long time 
had been expecting. So high did the excitement of their welcome 
rise that many spread their outer garments in the road for Jesus to 
ride over. Others, breaking off branches from trees along the way, 
cast these before Him, as if the common earth was not good enough 
for one so high and so holy to ride upon. In short, they became 
enthusiastic for Jesus as their King." 

" But why did they throw their clothes in the dirt before Him ? 
That seems queer to me," said Charley. 

"It meant the same as if they had thrown themselves before Him. 
By this act they said, Lord Jesus, you are our King; rule over us ; ride 
over us; you are our Ruler now and forever. So they journeyed on, 
the crowd growine larger every moment. Then some one began to 
shout, Hosanna to the Son of David ! Hosanna to the Son of David ! 
David, you know, had been their greatest King, and now they be- 
lieved his long-expected Son, who would be even greater than he, 
had really come." 

"Wasn't Solomon greater than David?" asked Charley. 

"In riches and showy wisdom he was, but not in piety and true 
love to God, which is the greatest good a man can have." 

"Why did they say Hosanna? What does that mean?" asked 
Charley. 

"It means, Save now, we pray! or, Send prosperity now, we prav! 
As they used it, it recognized Jesus as King and called for prosperity 



THE TRIUMPHAL MARCH. 



421 



under His rule. Then they added, Blessed is He that cometh 
in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest! Shouting and 
singing these words from Psalm cxviii and others, they came down 
the Mount of Olives at the east of Jerusalem and crossed the inter- 
vening valley." 




" And many spread their garments in the way ; and others cut down branches off the trees., and sf rawed 

them in the way" — Mark xi, 8. 

" What did they call that valley, Grandpa ?" asked Mary... 

"The valley of Jehoshaphat, or of Kedron, from the name of the 
brook which flows through it. From the Olivet side you can see the 
t'ty distinctly, and from the city side you can see persons on the op- 
27 



422 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



posite hill. The great throng from Bethany came trooping down the 
hillside. Such a commotion and crowd would quickly arouse the 
people. Matthew says, The city was moved, saying, Who is this ? 
Probably the people thought some famous person was coming from 
some other land, and that this was causing the tumult, or one of their 
own great men might be coming. In answer to the question, Who 
is this? there was but one answer, however. It is Jesus, It is Jesus. 
So He had a triumphal march into and through the city ; men, women, 
and children bidding Him welcome as their King, which they believed 
Him to be." 

"And what did Jesus do after this great display?" asked Mary. 

" He went to the Temple, and there found all sorts of peddlers and 
venders of small wares, just as He did three years before. So He 
roused Himself, and once more drove them out of the holy place. 
He then spent the day healing sick persons and doing all manner 
of good works. It was a busy day, but Jesus was an active worker, 
a noble example for all of us. When the day drew toward its close 
He left the city and went again to Bethany, where He spent the night 
with His true friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus." 

" I have a sweet hymn on this very subject. Let us sing it," said 
Mrs. Reed. A second invitation was not needed, so they sang: 



" When, His salvation bringing, 

To Zion Jesus came, 
The children all stood singing 

Hosanna to His Name; 
Nor did their zeal offend Him, 

But, as He rode along, 
He let them still attend Him 

And smiled to hear their song. 



' And since the Lord retaineth 

His love for children still — 
Though now as King He reigneth 

On Zion's heavenly hill — 
We'll flock around His banner, 

We'll bow before His throne ; 
And cry aloud, Hosanna 

To David's Royal Son!" 



424 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

GATHERING DARKNESS; 

Or, LOVE AND SORROW STRANGELY BLENDED. 



" \ ND what have you to tell us to-night?" asked Carrie, as 

I \ hand-in-hand she and Grandpa entered the sitting-room 
"*" -*• after supper. 

" I have some sad things to talk about for a few nights," answered 
he. " We have come to those last scenes in the life of the Lord, and 
they are full of sorrow, though they are full of love." 

"But, Grandpa, if Jesus went through those scenes of sorrow and 
did it for us, we ought to be willing to talk about them, even if they 
are sad." 

"True, Carrie ; and we will talk of them. But out of the sadness 
we will find much licrht and comfort comings, I am sure. We left 
Jesus at Bethany, where He spent His last night of rest. It corres- 
ponded to Wednesday night, as we name our days. What He said 
and did that night and on most of Thursday has not been told us. 
We are certain it was all good and loving, and it doubtless had 
reference to His death, which was so near." 

"I wish we did know," said Carrie, regretfully. 

"All we know is that as the afternoon wore away He and the 
apostles started for Jerusalem that they might eat the Passover 
there. In the upper room of a friendly man's house they met and 
for the last time together, ate the Passover as the Jews were then 
accustomed to do." 

" Why don't we do it, too, then ?" asked Mary. " We ought to 
imitate Him — ought n't we ?" 

" Where He desires us to we should. But when they had eaten 



GATHERING DARKNESS. 425 

this Passover He established a new feast in memory of Himself; this 
He commanded them to observe until He should aoain come back 
to the earth." 

" You speak of the Lord's Supper — don't you, Grandpa?" inquired 
Mary. 

" Yes, dear. That takes the place of the Passover for us. Jesus 
was very sorrowful as they ate the Passover ; He said that one of 
those twelve apostles, who sat and ate with Him, should betray Him 
that very night." 

" That was Judas !" exclaimed Charley. " Everybody knows 
him." 

" Yes ; but he joined the others in asking, Is it I ? Is it I ? Jesus 
knew who it was that should betray Him, and when Judas asked, Is 
it I ? Jesus quietly answered, Thou hast said ; that is, You have hit 
it — you are the man." 

" Dear me ! how could he stand that ?" asked Carrie, with some- 
thino- of a shudder. 

" He could not stand it," answered Grandpa ; " he rose and left 
the room at once, but not till Jesus had said to him, That thou doest 
do quickly." 

" Why did He say that?" asked Charley, with surprise. "I should 
think He would rather have said, Judas, don't you dare do that 
wicked thino-!" 

" Long before that time the prophets had foretold that Jesus 
should be betrayed for thirty pieces of silver, and He would not 
dodge any of His appointed sufferings. For this reason He urged 
Judas on ; and on he went, meeting the w r icked men whom he had 
already seen and arranging to capture Jesus." 

" What did the others say to all this ?" 

" We are not told, Charley. Probably they said very little ; they 
were too much confused and too sorrowful. But Jesus was not con- 
fused. When Judas had gone, the Lord took bread, broke it, and 
gave to the disciples, telling them all to eat of it, and saying, This 



gathering darkness. 427 

is my body, which is broken for you. Then He poured some wine 
into a cup and gave them that to drink, saying it was the new tes- 
tament — that is, the new agreement or bargain — in His blood, which 
was shed for the remission or forgiveness ot sins." 

" But, Grandpa, His body was not broken then, nor His blood 
shed. What did He mean by speaking so?" 

" His body was so soon to hang on the cross, His flesh being 
strained and torn and broken there ; His blood was so soon to be 
shed, that He spoke as if both were already done, and none of the 
disciples could long be in doubt as to what He meant." 

" I see. He meant, My body that will soon be broken, and, My 
blood that will soon be shed, didn't He ?" 

" That was it,, darling ; and it must have made them feel very sad 
to hear Jesus talking so. While they were together there He talked 
over the precious things we find in five full chapters of John's gospel, 
from chapter xiii onward. He prayed with them in this upper room, 
too, as we read in John xvii ; then they sang a hymn and went out 
into the street. They moved along to what is called St. Stephen's 
gate, on the east side of the city, out of which they passed through 
the burial places about the city's walls and down into the valley. 
Here they crossed the brook Kedron, and just beyond, at the foot of 
the Mount of Olives, lay the Garden of Gethsemane, into which they 
went." 

" Is that garden there now ?" inquired Mary. 

"Yes," answered Grandpa; "the same into which Jesus went. It 
is now in charge of a company of monks, who have a small dwelling 
in the garden. Around the inside of the walls pictures are hung 
in cases, representing a variety of scenes in the final hours of Jesus. 
The garden is kept in good condition, having an abundant supply of 
flowers, which are sold to visitors. There are ei^ht olive trees now 
standing in the garden ; they are of great age, but are not trees 
which stood when Jesus visited the spot. The monks, however, point 
out one as that under which the Lord prayed." 



428 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Did Jesus talk with them as they went along to the garden ? ' 
asked Charley, quite seriously. 

" He did. It was bright moonlight; everything was clear and dis- 
tinct as they went. They could see His sad face as He talked. All 
that He said on the way is not told, but He did say that He should 
be smitten that night and that they should be scattered like a flock 
of sheep. They all declared they would be true to Him, though they 
died for it. Peter was specially strong in his assertions; but Jesus 
told him that before the cock should crow for the coming of day he 
would deny his Lord three times. Talking thus they passed alono 
and entered the oarden." 

" Oh ! it seems almost too solemn to talk about," said Carrie, her 
blue eyes full of tears. 

"At the gate of the garden Jesus left all but Peter, James, and 
John. A little further on He left them also, telling them to watch. 
Pie then went still further into the garden and fell upon the ground 
in an agony of prayer. In such distress was He that perspiration 
came out upon Him in great beads and fell to the ground like big 
drops of blood. While He was praying the disciples all fell asleep. 
He woke them and prayed again ; but again they fell asleep. A 
second time He woke them, and again they fell asleep. Again He 
prayed most earnestly that, if possible. His bitter cup of suffering 
might pass from Him. Then an angel appeared, unto Him from 
heaven, as Luke says, strengthening Him. The end of this story I 
will read you from Mark's own account. He says of Jesus : And He 
cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take 
your rest. It is enough ; the hour is come ; behold, the Son of Man 
is betrayed into the hands of sinners ! Rise up ; let us go. Lo ! he 
that betrayeth me is at hand !" 

" How sad !-" said Mar}'. Carrie had nothing to say, and Char- 
ley, who had hardly spoken during the evening l wiped his eyes and 
tenderly said " Good-night." 




HELP FOR THE SUFFERER 



430 GRAiWFA GOODWIN'S SlOKILS 

BETRAYED AND BOUND; 

Or, STILL DEEPER DARKNESS. 



x 



HAT was an awfully sad story about Jesus in the garden," 
said Carrie to her Grandpa, as she nestled at his side on 



the arm of his big chair. 



" Sad indeed, my child," was his answer. " But that was only the 
beginning. Deeper darkness was gathering about Jesus every mo- 



ment 



" Tell us about it all," was Mary's request, which gave voice to the 
unanimous desire of the family. 

"You remember that when Jesus pointed out Judas as the one 
who should betray Him, that miserable man got up and went out. 
He knew it was true. He had been plotting that very thing. When 
he was exposed he might have acknowledged his guilt and aban- 
doned it. Better far to do this than to vo on in the wicked scheme. 
But there was no repentance in him. Right or wrong, exposed or 
concealed, he meant to put it through. Possibly he pretended to be 
hurt at what Jesus said. Guilty people often play the part of injured 
innocence. But whatever was his pretense for going out, out he 
went at once to the head men of the Sanhedrim, who wanted to catch 
Jesus and kill Him, and Judas boldly asked what they would pay him 
if he should hand Jesus over to them." 

" That was just horrid !" exclaimed Carrie. "And he had been an 
apostle ! That was too bad !" 

" He ought to have had a rope around his neck. I'd like to have 
given a pull at the other end ; he'd have had enough, I'll bet, before 
I'd let him loose." 



BE TRA YE I) AND BO UND. 43 1 

" Why, Charley, Charley," exclaimed his mother, " how you talk ! 
God says, Vengeance is mine. He does not say, Vengeance is 
Charley Reed's." 

"All the same, mother; I'd help God by pulling on that rope hard, 
I would." 

" He will get to the end of his rope in due time, Charley. God 
will see that all these things come out right. After some bargain- 
ing with the rulers of the Jews, Judas agreed to hand over Jesus for 
thirty pieces of silver." 

" How much money was that ?" asked Charley. 

" It is not entirely certain, as the exact coin meant is not known. 
It may have been as little as four dollars and fifty cents, or it may 
have been as much as twenty-five dollars, but it was not more than 
this last trifling amount. In either case, it was poor pay for worse 
work." 

" So say we all of us," shouted Charley. " The idea of doing such 
a dirty job for twenty-five dollars ! I'd work for a penny a day 
first." 

" These Jewish rulers were glad enough to get fairly on the track 
of Jesus, especially under the lead of one who had been an apostle. 
So they agreed to pay the money, and they gave him some of the 
Temple guard which was under their control. They also secured 
a few soldiers, claiming, no doubt, that they were about to make 
an important arrest, in which they might need the help of armed 
men." 

"The idea!" exclaimed Mary; "and all this while Jesus was talk- 
ing so lovingly and praying with His disciples, instead of drilling 
soldiers or stirring up anybody to fight." 

"Judas led this official company away from the rulers. Some of 
them had torches, some had clubs, some had spears and swords. 
Of course, such a company would attract attention, and idlers would 
fall in to see what was coming to pass In this way a rabble soon 
gathered, night though it was, and all followed after Judas." 



432 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" The mean old hulk," muttered Charley, in a tone full of contempt. 
Grandpa thought it best to let the boy say his say, so without reply- 
ing he went on with his own story. 

"Judas probably expected to catch Jesus in that upper room where 
he had left Him. Thither he led the officers and the rabble which 
followed. They reached the house, but it was deserted. The officers 
and crowd were for the moment disappointed; but said Judas, I know- 
where to find Him. Along- the narrow streets he led them to St. 
Stephen's gate; out of the city they passed hurriedly; through the 
crowded burial-places they made their way ; down the hill, across 
the brook, up the slope a little distance to the gate of Gethsemane. 
All is still. They enter stealthily, peering around in the moonlight. 
There lie eight of His followers asleep. Where is He? Hist! 
gently ! do not wake them ! The crowd creeps on into the garden. 
Gently ! there lie three more asleep ; but where is He ? See ! He 
comes to meet them ! He speaks, and they all fall backward to the 
ground. In an instant they rally; Judas approaches Jesus; he kisses 
Him, as had been pre-arranged, that no mistake should be made. 
Then the mob rushes forward and seizes the Lord." 

" Let me," said Mrs. Reed, " give you this account in Mark's own 
words. He tells this story so briefly and yet so beautifully. He says : 
And immediately while He yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the 
twelve, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from 
the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders. And he that be- 
trayed Him had given them a token, saying, Whomsoever I shall 
kiss, that same is He ; take Him, and lead Him away safely. And 
as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to Him, and saith, 
Master, Master ; and kissed Him. And they laid their hands on 
Him, and took Him." 

" Shame on them, shame !" exclaimed Carrie, thoroughly aroused. 
"Such a crowd to lay their vile hands on such a man ! It was an 
outrage." 

"So Peter thought. The commotion had awakened him. He had 



BETRAYED AND BOUND. 433 

taken along an old sword, and in he sprang to help Jesus. The first 
man he seized was Malchus, a servant of the High Priest. In an in- 
stant Peter struck for his head, but the man dodged, and his ear was 
cut off by the blow of Peter's sword." 




" And they laid their hands on him, and took him. And one of them that stood ly drew a sword, and 
smote a servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. — Mark xiv, 46, 47. 

"Pity it wasn't his head," said .Charley. 

" Jesus didn't think so, my boy. He rebuked Peter for his violence 
and healed the man's ear at once." 

" Put his ear on again, sound and well ?" asked Charley, with evi- 
dent surprise. 



434 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Even so," said Grandpa. " He and Charley are apart again." 

"Well, then they let Jesus go, didn't they?" asked the boy. 

" No; they brought out their ropes, bound Him, and led Him away. 
Out of the gate they went; over the brook again; up the hill; through 
the burial-places; into the gate; through the streets, in the chill night 
air, to the palace of the High Priest." 

" And did Jesus say nothing against this outrage ?" asked Mary, 
with considerable warmth. , 

"Nothing to prevent it. He spoke to sting the guilty consciences 
of those who came against Him. Looking Judas squarely in the 
eye, he said, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss ?" 

"That must have stung him good," said Charley, with a movement 
as if he himself had been stung by a wasp. " But it wasn't half 
hard enough. He ouirht to have been stungr worse than that." 

" What else did He say ?" asked Mary. 

"Let me read what further He said," answered her mother. "Luke 
tells us this : Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains 
of the Temple, and the elders which were come to Him, Be ye come 
out as against a thief, with swords and staves? When I was daily 
with you in the Temple, ye stretched forth no hands against me : 
but this is your hour, and the power of darkness." 

"With these words," added Grandpa, " He submitted to arrest and 
was led away a prisoner." 

" How cruel !" exclaimed Mary. "What evil had He done, that 
they should treat Him so ?" 

"None at all," answered Grandpa. "The rulers had loner been 
jealous of Him, and since His great triumphal march a few davs be- 
fore, they could endure Him no longer, but determined to kill Him." 

"And where was Peter all this while, and the other chaps?" 

" Of them, Charley, I will try to tell you to-morrow. Now let us 
say, Good-night." 



MIDNIGHT ADVENTURES. 435 

MIDNIGHT ADVENTURES : 

Or, DESERTED AND DENIED. 



" IV TOW, Grandpa, what about those disciples of Jesus ? You 
^L said you would tell us of them to-night." In this way 

-^- ^ Charley started the conversation, and Grandpa willingly 
began his promised story. 

" One short record about the disciples in the excitement at the 
arrest of Jesus is very sad. It is said, They all forsook Him and 
fled. One young man attempted to follow, but the mob chased him 
and seized him by his outer garment, out of which he slipped and 
made his escape, leaving it in their hands. There was evidently 
some violence shown by the crowd, which in part accounts for the 
scattering of the disciples." 

"What about Peter and his old sword?" asked Charley. 

"There are some facts about Peter of which I ought to speak," 
said Grandpa, " though you may not like him any the better for them. 
I refer to his repeated denials of Jesus. The old sword he probably 
dropped." 

" I was wondering whether you meant to skip over that denial," 
answered Mary. "I know something of it, and I want to hear more 
of it from you." 

" You must remember, in judging of Peter, that he was taken at 
a great disadvantage. He was tired, cold, discouraged, and hungry. 
It was just before day; he had been out all night; he was in a de- 
spondent mood. Jesus had told him bad news during the night, and 
had rebuked him — first for sleeping in the garden, and afterward for 
smiting that man, Malchus. Then Jesus had been arrested and car-j 



436 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



ried off by the mob, and Peter hardly knew what to think or to do. 
Everything seemed going to ruin. All his expectations were disap- 
pointed. The cause he loved, and for which he had left all, seemed 
on the verge of ruin, and his Master Himself seemed to have failed 
him." 

" I don't wonder he felt badly. Anybody would have been dis- 
couraged by so much trouble." 

"True, Mary, and all this Jesus knew. But Petfer was so bold and 
self-ccr.fident that the Lord felt compelled to teach him a lesson. He 
told Peter, as they went to the garden, that they all should be 
offended or stumbled, because of Him that night. Peter did not 
think it possible. He declared, Though all be offended because of 
Thee, yet will not I. He thought himself very strong and true, but 
he had a lesson to learn, and learn it he did that very night, and to 
his sorrow." 

"How did it happen, Grandpa? lam awfully anxious to know 
about it." 

"Well, Charley, it happened in this way. When Jesus was 
arrested and led off Peter followed a long distance behind. He 
went all the way to the gate of the High Priest's palace. It was shut 
and Jesus had been taken in. John and possibly some others of 
the apostles had gone in after Him, however. John was acquainted 
there, so he went again to the gate and brought in Peter, who sat 
down outside the hall of judgment, among the soldiers and servants. 
They started a fire to warm themselves, and Peter stepped closer to 
warm himself. They were talking about the arrest of Jesus, and 
how His disciples scattered and ran, when a servant girl, seeing 
Peter, shook her finger at him, saying, Thou also wast with Him. 
Everybody's attention turned at once to Peter. What was he to do ? 
To own that he was with Jesus would bring upon him ridicule, abuse, 
and perhaps death. What could he do?" 

" Own up and die," exclaimed Charley. 

" Easier said than done, my boy. Peter wanted to do right, I am 




23 



DENYING THE MASTER. 



438 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

sure ; but he was scared ; so he stumbled out the answer, I know 
not what thou sayest; meaning, I don't know what you are talking 
about. Then he slipped off into the porch near the gate, intending 
to getaway when the door should be opened, but there another ser- 
vant saw him, probably the one who had admitted him on John's 
request, and she, too, charged him with having been with Jesus. 
Then, with an oath, he declared, I do not know the man." 

" That was awful !" said Carrie, her eyes moistening as if about 
to send forth a flood of tears. " How could Peter do so ? I'm sure 
I couldn't say such a thing if I died for it." 

" None of us, dear girl, can be quite sure what we would do until 
we are tried. Peter was quite sure beforehand, yet he fell. Of 
course, the two charges against Peter and his two denials made talk 
among the idle bystanders, several of whom, having talked it over, 
came to him again and said, Surely thou art also one of them, for thy 
speech betrayeth thee — that is, his way of talking showed him to be 
from Galilee, the home of most of the apostles. Peter saw that 
things were now getting desperate, so he began to curse and to 
swear, saying over and over again, I know not the man." 

" Worse and worse ! How could he do so ?" exclaimed Carrie. 

" It is, indeed, amazing, but it was done. It is amazing, too, that 
many now, who know Jesus and think they love Him, never speak 
for Him nor own Him as their Lord. By their silence they deny 
Him. They do not use oaths and curses, for no gentleman will 
swear; common politeness forbids that. 

" To swear is neither brave, polite, nor wise." 

"That was three times Peter denied the Lord, wasn't it?" 
" Yes, Mary ; just as Jesus said when they were going to the gar- 
den, and no sooner did this last denial occur than the cock crew. 
Then Peter remembered that the Lord had said, Before the cock 
crow thou shalt deny me thrice." 

" Poor, poor Peter ! how did he feel then ?" asked Carrie. 



MIDNIGHT ADVENTURES. 439 

" Badly enough, I'm sure ; but it was done. He could not. recall 
the denials. Just then Jesus was led by, probably on the way to 
Pilate's judgment-hall, and He looked on Peter. Peter was looking 
that way, and their eyes met. Jesus was so sad, so reproving, and 
yet so loving, that the look broke Peter's heart. He could stand it 
no longer. The record of the gospels is that he went out and wept 
bitterly." 

Big tears were in Carrie's eyes as she said, " Oh ! I'm so sorry 
he did it." Charley, even, was mellowed by the story, and said, " I'm 
sorry too. It's too bad, so it is !" 

" But Peter from this sad lesson became a wiser and better man," 
continued Grandpa. " The Lord fully and freely forgave him, and 
set him at work in the church again. He worked hard and long, 
and at last was so true to his Master that he died a martyr rather 
than deny Him." 

"I remember," said Mary, "that you told us how he was crucified 
for Jesus' sake." 

"And now let us remember hot to be boastful and self-confident, 
but to be watchful and prayerful lest we, too, fall ; and let us never 
be ashamed to acknowledge Jesus as our Lord and our Master. He 
demands this, and is worthy of it." 

"Let us sing that lesson into our hearts," said Mrs. Reed. They 
all loved to sing, so, without waiting for a another invitation, they 
gathered at the organ and sang the old hymn : 

" Jesus, and shall it ever be, 
A mortal man ashamed of Thee ? 
Ashamed of Thee, whom angels praise, 
Whose glories shine through endless days I 

"Ashamed of Jesus, that dear Friend 
On whom my hopes of heaven depend ! 
No ! when I blush be this my shame, 
That I no more revere His name." 



440 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



A MOCKERY OF JUSTICE 

Or, OVERAWED BY A MOB. 



WE are all very anxious, Grandpa, Lo have you tell us 
about the trial of Jesus. The account in the Gospels 
seems mixed up a good deal, and we want to under- 
stand it better." 

" I am glad to oblige you, Mary, and the others, too, and help 
straighten out the account of the Lord's trial. That trial was very 
unfair from beginning- to end. The night arrest in the garden was an 
outrageous and brutal affair. After it took place Jesus was hurried 
along as though he were a common culprit. On reaching the city, 
he was taken at once to the house of Caiphas, the High Priest and 
chief of the Sanhedrim." 

" That was where Peter denied him, wasn't it?" asked Carrie. 

" That was the place. Annas, father-in-law to the High Priest, 
was waiting for the coming of the party. When he saw the pris- 
oner really in their hands he sent Him, after a little delay, and bound 
as He still was, to Caiphas and some members of the Sanhedrim, 
who had hurriedly come together. This Caiphas had long before 
counseled that Jesus should be put to death, and now, he whose 
mind had long been made up against the prisoner, who was his bit- 
terest enemy, sits as a judge on a question involving that prisoner's 
life or death." 

" Outrageous !" exclaimed Mary. "Why, with us a man who has 
any opinion concerning a prisoner's guilt or innocence is not allowed 
to sit on a jury even, much less could he act as judge. He could not 
deal justly." 



A MOCKERY OF JUSTICE. 441 

" But other abuses were heaped on Jesus. While Annas and his 
cronies were questioning Jesus, one rude fellow who stood by struck 
Him a blow, an indignity and piece of injustice which even the meek 
and lowly sufferer Himself rebuked. But after this one expression 
of dissent He bore all they heaped upon Him and did not murmur. 
These unjust judges wanted, above all else, to- put him to death, but 
they had not the right to do this in any case. So th'ey sent Jesus to 
Pilate, the Roman Governor." 

" What had he to do with the Jews ?" asked Charley. 

" A great deal. The Jews were a conquered people and the 
Romans ruled them. Pilate had been appointed by the Roman 
Emperor to govern at Jerusalem. He alone could inflict the penalty 
of death in that city, and for this reason they hurried Jesus off to 
him, hoping thus to have their prisoner sentenced to die. Pilate was 
very anxious to please the Jews. They were keeping their Passover 
feast, and to go into the common court-room at Pilate's palace would 
have made them unclean, as they called it ; that is, unfit to enter the 
Temple and engage in religious services. To favor them in this mat- 
ter Pilate went out of the judgment hall to the open court-yard to 
meet them, and to hear what they had to say. So they started with 
a victory over him." 

" He was too willing, I think," said Charley. " They might have 
waited till their feast was over, if they were so particular about 
themselves." 

" He was too willing, indeed," continued Grandpa, " and yet he 
wanted to save Jesus, and tried to do so. He said many things in 
His behalf, but he did not say with manly decision, You shall do 
Him no harm." 

" That's what he ou^ht to have said." 

" Certainly, Mary. The rulers went on and accused Jesus of 
various misdeeds, and as they did so it came out that He belonged 
to the province of Galilee, which lay in the northern part of Pales- 
tine. Then Pilate thought he could rid himself of further trouble. 



442 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



Herod, who was Governor of Galilee, was then in Jerusalem, so 
Pilate sent Jesus off to him. But Jesus would not answer a word to 
any of Herod's questions, which so enraged him that he and his 
men mocked and ridiculed Jesus, and put on Him an old, cast-off 

HP 




" Pilate . . . brought Jesus forth, and sat dcnun in the judgment-seat 
the Jews, Behold your king." — John xix, 13, 14. 



and he saith unto 



royal robe, burlesquing His title as King of the Jews, and in this 
garb sent Him back to Pilate." 

" That was shameful," exclaimed Mary. " To make such sport of 
a low, base drunkard would be bad enough, but to do it with Jesus is 
simply vile." 






A MOCKERY OF JUSTICE. 443 

" Yes, and doubtless a crowd followed, hooting and jeering as Ke 
was led so patiently through the streets. When Pilate found Jesus 
ao-ain on his hands, he was more than ever perplexed, and the people 
were more than ever clamorous that he should sentence Jesus to 
death. Pilate then proposed to scourge Him and let Him go ; but 
no — they yelled the more, Crucify Him ! crucify Him ! Then Pilate 
brought out Jesus and showed Him to the crowd, saying, Behold 
your King! but they raved like madmen, and would be satisfied with 
nothing but His death. To make Pilate's case more difficult, his wife 
sent word to him that she had suffered terribly with dreams about 
Jesus, and she warned her husband not to do anything against Him; 
but the people raved, declaring that Jesus had claimed to be a King, 
and if Pilate spared Him he was not true to Caesar, the only rightful 
King, as they pretended very loyally to believe. In this way they 
overawed Pilate." 

"The old sneak!" exclaimed Charley, with disgust. 

"At this point Pilate brought out a basin of water and washed his 
hands before the people, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this 
just person ; to which the rulers answered, His blood be upon us 
and our children." 

"What good did washing his hands do?" asked Carrie, her face 
aglow with interest. 

" None at all. Water cannot wash our sins away. It was simply 
a sign to the people that he did not think it right to crucify Jesus ; 
and yet, knowing it to be wrong, he gave commandment that He 
should be crucified at once." 

" The miserable fellow ! A pretty Governor he was. Whom did 
he govern ? Why, the people governed him. He ought to have 
been ashamed of himself!" Such were Carrie's excited outbursts, 
and the agreement of the others with her views was clearly shown 
by their approving looks. 

" What was done after he ordered them to crucify Jesus ?" asked 
Mary. 



444 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



"Then he was cruelly whipped on His bare back and handed over 
to the soldiers. While preparations for the crucifixion were making 
they put a crown of thorns on His head, a reed in His hand for a 
sceptre, and drew the old royal robe over Him again. They also 




" And he bearing his cross -went forth into a place called the place of a shull."— John xix. 17 



struck Him with their hands and with the reed; they spat upon Him, 
bowed in derision before Him, mocked Him, and made all the sport 
of Him which a crowd of low, base fellows could invent. When 
all was ready, they put His own robe on Him again, and, compelling 
Him to carry the heavy wooden cross, they led Him out to the place 




VIa DOLOROSA OF JERUSALEM AND ECCE HOMO ARCH. 



446 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

of execution. In Jerusalem to-day there is a street called the Via 
Dolorosa, or Sorrowful Way, along which, it is said, Jesus carried the 
cross. Across this street there is an old arch supporting an inclosed 
balcony. The story is that from the window of this balcony Pilate 
showed Jesus to the crowd and said, Behold the man — Ecce Homo, 
in the Greek language — from which this is called the Ecce Homo 
Arch." 

" But is that story true ?" asked Mary. 

"Probably not; yet the arch is very old, and is a fragment from 
some older building than those now about it. It is said to have been 
part of the palace occupied by Pilate. But whether by this way or 
some other way He bore His cross, matters little. He carried it 
until He fainted under the load; then they seized one of the fol- 
lowers, a man named Simon, and compelled him to bear it. So Jesus 
was led to Calvary." 

"And did not' Jesus complain in all this?" 

"No, Carrie; we have no record that He complained in it all. He 
knew how unjust it all was, but He bore it, sorrowing most of all that 
men could be so blind to their own best (rood." 

As Grandpa ended this statement, Mrs. Reed touched the organ 
very sweetly, accompanying herself as she sang the old, old hymn : 

" Must Jesus bear the cross alone, 
And all the world go free ? 
No, there's a cross for every one, 
And there's a cross for me. 

"The consecrated cross I'll bear 
Till death shaH set me free ; 
And then go home, my crown to wear, 
For there's a crown for me." 

"So will I bear the cross," said Carrie, warmly yet tenderly. "I'll 
do anything for Jesus." 



IT IS FINISHED. 447 



IT IS FINISHED; 

Or, THE TRAGEDY COMPLETED. 



" f~^\ UR subject to-night is the saddest of our series," said 
1 1 Grandpa to his little company of hearers. " It takes us to 

^— ' Calvary, where Jesus was crucified." 

" Where was Calvary, Grandpa, and what kind of a place was it ?" 
asked Carrie. 

" It was the place of public execution just outside the city walls at 
Jerusalem. The Roman name, Calvary, and its older Hebrew name, 
Golgotha, both mean a skull, and may have been given because it 
was not uncommon to seethe remains of dead criminals there, though 
probably it was due to the form of a round, skull-shaped rock on which 
the executions took place." 

" Is that rock there now ?" inquired Mary. 

"It is not altogether certain. Outside the present walls of Jeru- 
salem there is nothing corresponding to Calvary, but inside the walls 
and in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre the traditional and probably 
the true Calvary is shown. There is in this place a rounded rock 
with an indentation, which is claimed to be the very socket in which 
the cross of Jesus was inserted. A crack in the rock is shown also, 
which, it is affirmed, was made by the earthquake when He died. 
Over this rock is a little chapel very richly ornamented with silver 
and gold." 

"And can anybody see the rock, Grandpa?" asked Charley. 

"Anybody who goes there at the appointed times and pays the 
proper fees to those in charge of the place." 

"But," interposed Carrie, "I have often heard of Mount Calvary, 



448 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

and there is a hymn about a green hill far away where Jesus died 
Do you mean there is no hill or mount?" 

" There is none, my dear, to the best of my knowledge and belief. 
But that matters very little ; there was a place called Calvary, and 
there the Lord was crucified " 

"How did they crucify Him, Grandpa?" asked Mary, with some 
hesitation, as if the subject was too sacred to be talked of. 

"There were different methods, but by any one of them the victim 
suffered fearful agonies, and died by the most terrible tortures. In 
the case of Jesus it is probable that the v 'oss was laid upon the 
ground, He being placed on His back upon it. His arms were then 
stretched upon the cross-piece and huge nails were driven through 
the palms of His hands, fastening them to the wood. His feet were 
then adjusted one upon the other upon a projecting block near the 
foot of the cross, and one cjreat nail was driven through both feet 
and into the block. When He was thus fixed to the cross, it was 
lifted up, He hanging upon it, and all His weight being thrown upon 
the man cried flesh of the hands and feet. The foot of the cross was 
then dropped into the socket prepared for it, and so He was left to 
die." 

"How terrible!" groaned Carrie. "And Jesus, who never did 
harm to any person, endured all that!" 

"So great was the anguish of crucifixion that a stupefying drink 
was usually given the victim before it was begun. This drink was 
offered Jesus, but He refused it, preferring to retain His senses, even 
though Hs felt to the full the fearful pangs of His execution." 

"What did He say?" asked Charley, evidently thinking some pro- 
test must have been made to such horrid work. 

"As the Roman soldiers nailed Him to the cross He prayed for 
them, saying, Father, forgive them ; they know not what they do.'' 

" How lovely !" was Mary's comment, while Charley looked sur- 
prised and Carrie wiped her blue eyes very often. Directly Charley 
recovered himself and asked, " What else did He sav ?" 



450 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" While on the cross He said several other things, making seven 
sayings in all. When the cross had been fixed in an upright posi- 
tion and the first gush of agony had passed, Jesus saw His mother, with 
other women and John, standing near the cross. His heart yearned 
with love toward her. What He then said Mary may read from 
John xix, 25-27." 

Mary read : " Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, 
and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Mag- 
dalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple 
standing by whom He loved, He saith unto His mother, Woman, be- 
hold thy son ! Then saith He to the disciple, Behold thy mother ! 
And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home." 

" Who was that disciple ?" asked Charley. 

"John. He often speaks of himself in this modest way, making 
no mention of his own name. He always took care of Jesus' mother 
after that." 

" How terrible it must have been for her to stand there and see 
Jesus suffer!" 

"Yes, Mary; and her terrible experience has given rise to one of 
our oldest and grandest poems, the Stabat Mater, as it is called from 
its opening words in the Latin language. It is very old, having been 
written probably about six hundred years ago. It is so sweet and 
plaintive that it has been set to music by some of the greatest musi- 
cal masters of the world and has been translated into a great many- 
Ian o-ua^es." 

"Let me give you a few of its verses," said Mrs. Reed, who had 
turned to the hymn in one of her many books of poetry. She read: 

" Stood th' afflicted mother weeping, 
Near the cross her station keeping, 

Whereon hung her Son and Lord ; 
Through whose spirit sympathizing, 
Sorrowing and agonizing, 

Also passed the cruel sword. 



IT IS FINISHED. 451 



•• Oh .' how mournful and distressed 
Was that favored and most blessed 

Mother of the Only Son ! 
Trembling, grieving, bosom heaving, 
While perceiving, scarce believing, 

Pains of that Illustrious One. 

"Who the man, who, called a brother, 
Would not weep, saw he Christ's mother 

In such deep distress and wild? 
Who could not sad tribute render 
Witnessing that mother tender 
Agonizing with her Child ? 

" For His people's sin atoning 
Him she saw in torments groaning, 

Given to the scourge's rod ; 
Saw her darling offspring dying, 
Desolate, forsaken, crying, 

Yield His spirit up to God." 

All sat silent for a moment when these verses had been read- 
Carrie in tears, the others looking as though they might easily be 
Grandpa then said : 

"Jesus spoke next to the dying thief at His side and assured him 
he should enter Paradise that very day. Then He cried, I thirst ! 
then, My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me ? Then, as He 
was about to die, It is finished ! and at last, Father, into Thy hand? 
I commend my spirit." 

" And then did He die ?" 

" Yes, Carrie ; then He died, having hung upon the cross about 
six hours — most of the time in silence and much of it in darkness so 
great that night seemed to have come at noonday." 

"Where can I find those sayings, Grandpa? I want to learn 
them." 

" Not in any one gospel, Mary." But from all the gospels you can 
readily gather them. Look near the end of each gospel, where the 
crucifixion is described, and you will find them all." 



4o2 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORtFS. 

"Thanks. I'll learn them." "And I, too," added Came. 

"When Jesus died there was a terrific scene. Let me read it from 
Matthew's account: Jesus, when He had cried again with a loud voice, 
yielded up the ghost. And behold, the vail of the Temple was r< tit 
in twain from the top to the bottom : and the earth did quake and 
the rocks rent, and the graves were opened. . . . Now, when 
the centurion, and they that were with him watching Jesus saw the 
earthquake and those things that were done, they feared greatly, 
saying, Truly this was the Son of God." 

"I don't wonder they said that," was Mary's comment. "I only 
wonder that everybody else did not say it." 

"There is a beautiful hymn w^e should all know," said Mrs. Reed. 

"It was written in the Hindostanee language by Krishnu Pal, the 

first Hindoo who became a Christian. It fits this story of Jesus on 

the cross." 

" O thou, my soul ! forget no more 
The Friend who all thy sorrows bore ; 
Let every idol he forgot, 
But, O my soul ! forget Him not ! 

" Oh ! no, till life itself depart, 
His name shall cheer and warm my heart — 
And lisping this from earth I'll rise, 
And join the chorus of the skies." 

"When it was sure He was dead," Grandpa resumed, "a rich man 
named Joseph, with Nicodemus — who had gone by night to Jesus, 
as we have seen — begged His body of Pilate that they might prepare 
to bury it. Permission was granted ; so they took the body from the 
cross, wrapped it in a linen sheet with gums and spices, as was then 
customary, carried it into a neighboring garden where Joseph had 
just built a new tomb, and into this they tenderly placed the dead 
form of their beloved Lord. Joseph, Nicodemus, John, Mar/ the 
mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and 
a woman named Salome, were there." 



IT IS FINISHED. 



453 



" Where were all the others ?" asked Charley. 

" Peter was away weeping over what he had done ; Judas, in re- 
morse, had hung himself; the others, discouraged and worn out, had 
scattered to their homes or among their friends. So it came to pass 




" TTiey took him down, am! \j rapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out 

of a rock.'''' — Mark xv, 46. 

that Jesus had a small funeral. After the body was laid in the tomb 
a great stone was rolled upon its entrance. On this stone Pilate 
then put the official seal of the government and set a guard of sol- 
diers to watch, lest the disciples should come and steal the body. So 

Jesus lay in the tomb ; His life in the flesh was over." 
29 



454 GRANDPA GOOD WIN'S S TORIES. 



THE OPENED TOMB; 

Or, FROM DEATH TO LIFE AGAIN. 



"T" AM so glad Jesus did not stay in that terrible tomb. How awful 
it would have been had He never risen again." 
-*- " Yes, Mary, it would have been awful for Him, and for us, 
too, for on the fact of His resurrection rest His power to save and 
His authority to teach. If Christ be not risen, Paul says, your faith 
is vain ; ye are yet in your sins." 

" Please, Grandpa, tell us about the resurrection," said Carrie. " I 
hear about it at Easter, but I want you to tell me. I understand you 
better." 

" You all remembsr how the tomb was closed, and fastened and 
watched. The burial occurred on Friday, near dark. All Saturday, 
which was the Jewish Sabbath, everything was quiet about the tomb. 
Possibly some stragglers walked out to look at it as a matter of 
curiosity, merely. The burial had been hurriedly done on Friday, 
his friends intending to do the customary rites more carefully alter 
the Sabbath. Early on Sunday the faithful women started with the 
needed spices and other material to wrap the body properly and lay 
it away. It was hardly daylight and as they went they were wonder- 
ing how they should roll the stone from the mouth of the tomb. 
When they came near enough to see, to their surprise they found the 
stone was rolled away, and hurrying to its open door, they found .he 
tomb was empty." 

" How did it get open ?" asked Charley. " And I thought a big 
lot of soldiers were there watching it." 

" Let Mary read the explanation from Matthew xxviii, 2-4." 



THE OPENED TOMB. 455 



The place was quickly found and Mary read : " And behold, there 
was a great earthquake : for the angel of the Lord descended from 
heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat 
upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white 
as snow. And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as 
dead men." 

" Ah," said Mrs. Reed, " that recalls those stirring verses of the 
grand Easter Hymn : 

" Angels, roll the rock away ! 
Death, yield up thy mighty prey ! 
See ! He rises from the tomb, — 
Rises with immortal bloom. 

"Lift, ye saints, lift up your eyes; 
Now to glory see Him rise ; 
Hosts of angels on the road 
Hail and sing the rising Lord." 

" That tells the story. The angel rolled away the stone ; Jesus 
rose ; the keepers, when recovered from their fright, fled to the city 
and excused themselves as best they could. When Mary Magda- 
lene saw the tomb open she ran back to the city to Peter and John, 
telling them the body had been stolen. The other women went 
direct to the tomb and saw an angel who told them Jesus had risen, 
and sent them to tell the news. Peter came next and John, but find- 
ing the body gone they were sore distressed, and went back to their 
homes." 

" They scared too easily," commented Charley. 

" Then Mary came again from the city and stood outside the open 
sepulchre, weeping. So deep was her grief that she saw nobody, 
though the risen Jesus and two of His angels were near at hand. 
Directly she looked into the tomb and saw the angels sitting, one at 
the head and one at the foot of the place where Jesus had lain. 
Why weepest thou ? was the question they asked her. She replied 
that Ihey had taken away her Lord, and she knew not where they 



456 



GRA NDPA GOOD WIN' S S TORIES. 



had lain Him. Hardly had she answered, when, turning about, she 
saw a man standing near. In the dim light her tear-filled eyes did 
not make clear whom the person was. He asked why she wept, and 
she answered Him as she had answered the angels, but the man said, 




" But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping." — John xx, II. 

Mary ! Then she knew the voice ; it was Jesus who spoke. Falling 
down before Him, she worshiped Him in the gladness of her loving 
heart." 

" That was grand !" exclaimed Carrie. " How happy she must 
have been !" 



THE OPENED TOMB. 



457 



" Yes ; and she was the first to see Jesus after He rose. Later in 
the day He appeared to the other women, then to Peter, then to two 
disciples whose names are not given, and at last to all the apostles, 
except Thomas, who was absent." 




' Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She . 



sailh unto him. 



Master." — John xx, 16. 



" How happy His resurrection must have made them," said Mary. 

" It did, indeed. They had but one story to tell that day. The 
Lord is risen, indeed ! The Lord is risen, indeed ! was their elad 
cry ; and as one after another saw Him, and came to tell the news,, 
their joy knew no bounds." 



458 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" How did He appear to them, Grandpa ? I don't understand," 
said Charley. 

" Two disciples started to walk to their home," began Grandpa, in 
explanation. " It was some ten miles from Jerusalem, in a village 
called Emmaus. They were very much disappointed and discour- 
aged, and as they walked along they talked about the sufferings and 
death of Jesus ; also about a rumor they had heard of His having 
risen from the dead. While talking thus a person, whom they did 
not recognize, joined them and asked why they were so sad. They 
told Him, and as they walked together they talked of what the Bible 
said about the Saviour, whose coming it promised. The person who 
had joined them talked so delightfully about the Scriptures that when 
the men reached their home, they insisted on His spending the night 
with them. They wanted to talk further with Him. He went in, sat 
down to supper, blessed the bread, and broke it, and then they sud- 
denly saw it wa£ Jesus Himself who was their guest." 

"What a surprise ! But, Grandpa, how was it they did not know 
Him sooner? It seems to me I w r ould have known Him in a 
minute." . 

"So it seems to me, Carrie, but Luke says of these men, Their 
eyes were holden, meaning that they were restrained, or held back, 
from knowing Him. God meant this journey to go just so far before 
they should know with whom they were. When it had gone far as 
He desired, He permitted them to know Jesus." 

"I guess they kept Him all night, when they found outrwmo He 
was," said Charley. 

"They would gladly have done so, I am sure," replied Grandpa, 
"but when they were sure it w r as He, off He w 7 ent, disappearing in- 
stantly from their sight. Then they hurried back to Jerusalem to 
tell what they had seen. They arrived, but Jesus had been there 
before them and had departed again, leaving the disciples rejoicing 
together and praising God." 

"I remember," said Mrs. Reed, "how lovingly those disciples 




A MEMORABLE TALK AT THE WAYSIDE. 



460 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

talked about this interview with Jesus. After He had left them, and 
probably while walking back to Jerusalem, they could talk of nothing 
else, and they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us 
while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the 
Scriptures ?" 

" They all felt that way," said Grandpa. " A happier set of men 
and women never lived. They praised God and rejoiced together 
all the time." 

" Well they might rejoice," said Mary. " And this is the reason 
why Easter is kept so joyfully, is it not, Grandpa ?" 

" Yes ; wherever Jesus is known there is joy in the Easter festival. 
And the first day of the week is the sacred day of Christians, be- 
cause on that day Jesus rose. By the early disciples it was for this 
reason called the Lord's day. And now, since the Lord has risen, 
there is one more scene of which I want to tell you. To-morrow 
evening we will try to consider His ascension, which was His return 
in triumph to His Father, from whom He came." 

'• Mary spoke of the joyful observance of Easter," said Mrs. Reed. 
" Only to-day I came across an account written fully fifteen hundred 
years ago by Gregory, a very worthy Greek bishop. He describes 
the joys of Easter in his times, and says : All labor ceased, all 
trades were suspended, the husbandman threw down his spade and 
plow and put on his holiday attire, the very tavern-keepers left 
their gains. The roads were empty of travelers, the sea of sailors. 
The mother came to church with the whole band of her children and 
domestics, her husband and the whole family rejoicing with her. All 
Christians assembled everywhere as members of one family. The 
poor man dressed like the rich, and the rich wore his gayest attire ; 
those who had none of their own borrowed of their neighbors ; the 
very children were made to share in the joy of the feast by putting 
on new clothes." 

" Ha ! ha !" laughed Charley, " those were the good old times we 
read of!" 



THE CONQUEROR'S RETURN. 461 

THE CONQUEROR'S RETURN; 

Or, A MARVELOUS ASCENSION. 



""T" TOW many people saw Jesus after He rose from the dead?" 

I 1 asked Carrie when the family party had assembled once 

-*- -*- more. 

"I cannot answer that fully; I do not know. But Paul gives an 
answer sufficiently explicit in I Corinthians xv." 

"I have it!" shouted Mary in an instant; "and here is what you 
want, I think. Beginning with the fourth verse, it says, That He 
was buried and that He rose again the third day, according to the 
Scriptures ; and that He was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve ; 
after that He was seen of above five hundred brethren at once, of 
whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen 
asleep ; after that He was seen of James, then of all the apostles ; 
and last of all, He was seen of me also." 

" Here were a great many appearances of Jesus, as you see," said 
Grandpa, " and they were to different people, in widely separated* 
places, and scattered over a period of forty days. If any one had 
become excited and was misled about this matter, there was plenty 
of time for them to cool off and become undeceived." 

" Tell us about some of these visits, please. I want to understand 
them better," said Carrie, drawing her chair closer to Grandpa's. 

Putting his arm about her, he began : " Some three or four weeks 
after Jesus rose, Peter and six other apostles concluded to leave 
Jerusalem and go to the Sea of Galilee to catch some fish. I do not 
think they meant to give up the work Jesus had for them to do. On 
the other hand, I think the truth is that they were out of money. In- 



462 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 



stead of idly depending on other people for support, they decided to 
go to work and turn an honest penny for themselves. Off they 
started, making- a tramp of some fifty miles or more to the fishing 
grounds. They had friends and kindred there; so boats and nets 
were easily secured. They were good fishermen, knowing when, 
where, and how to fish, and at it they went in good earnest. They 
began at dark, but after working all night they had caught nothing." 

" Had poor luck, as we boys say," interposed Charley. 

"Yes, and they were about to quit. They had pulled in near to 
shore and were fixing up to go home. Just then they discovered a 
man standing on the beach. In the dim light of the morning and the 
mist they did not distinguish who it was. Directly the Stranger 
spoke to them, inquiring whether they had any meat or food— as 
though fie had come down to buy fresh fish from the boat, as was 
common there and is still common in all fishing sections. Of course, 
they had none, and so they told Him. He then ordered them to 
cast their net on the right side of the ship." 

"Why on that side rather than the other?" asked Mary. 

"I don't know. It was not the regular thing for them to do, or 
He would simply have said, Cast your net again. It may be the right 
side lay to deeper water, or it may have lain toward the shore ; we 
do not know, except- that it was not the usual side. In casting on 
,the right they acted simply on the direction of the Stranger on the 
shore ; somehow they were willing to do as He said. And they were 
rewarded ; for immediately their net was filled with a splendid mess 
of big fish. Indeed, there were so many that they could not lift the 
net to the deck of the boat, but had to haul it out on the bank, where 
they found in it a hundred and fifty-three large fishes." 

"Hey, boys!" exclaimed Charley; " that was fishing worth doing 
— wasn't it? That would suit me tip-top." 

" When they found their net was so full, John at once said, It is 
the Lord ! Of that he was sure ; no other person's word could have 
had such an effect. Peter, with his old zeal, cared no more for land- 



THE CONQUERORS RETURN. 



463 



ing the fish, but over he plunged and to the shore he paddled to be 
the first with Jesus. The others landed the fish and counted them.'' 

" Then what ?" asked Carrie, as Grandpa paused a moment. 

" When they reached the shore they found a fire burning and fish 




" When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's coat tinto him . 
cast himself into the sea." — John xxi, 7. 



and did 



already cooking, also a plentiful supply of bread. Jesus then fed 
them, and they all had a very precious talk together. Turning to 
Peter and calling him by name, He asked in the most impressive 
way, Lovest thou me? Three times Jesus pressed this question, 
and three times Peter answered most positively that he did love the 



464 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

Lord, after which the Lord ordered him to watch over and feed His 
flock and told him of the martyr's death he should finally die." 

" So Peter was forgiven for all he said and did in denying Jesus, 
was he?" asked Mary. 

" Fully and freely forgiven, and so much wiser and stronger was he 
now that he could lead the apostles and stand firm and faithful." 

" That was good," said Carrie, as if relieved of a heavy burden. 
" I do like Peter ; he was so earnest." 

"After some further loving talk the Lord left this happy party, 
and they became more devoted than ever to Him and His work." 

"I'm sure they had reason to," was Mary's comment. "They 
were sure He was then alive though He had died, and they could 
not doubt His power or His love." 

"The last appearance of the Lord to His disciples was by far the 
grandest. It occurred forty days after His resurrection. He met 
His disciples that day in Jerusalem, and Luke says in the last verses 
of his gospel, He led them out as far as to Bethany, and He lifted 
up His hands and blessed them. And it came to pass while He 
blessed them He was parted from them and carried up into heaven." 

" Beautiful !" exclaimed Carrie. " How sweet that walk with them 
must have been ! But just how was He parted from them?" 

"Turn to Acts i, 9-11, and read for yourself." 

Carrie found the place and read: "And when He had spoken 
these things, while they beheld He was taken up, and a cloud re- 
ceived Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly 
toward heaven as He went up, behold two men stood by them in 
white apparel, which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye 
gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus which is taken up from you 
into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go 
into heaven." 

"How grand!" exclaimed Mary. "And how did the disciples feel 
after that sight?" 

" Luke says, They worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with 



THE CONQUEROR'S RETURN. 



465 



great joy, and were continually in the Temple praising and blessing 
God." 

" Well they might worship Him and be happy, too," said Mary. 
" It seems to me that even I could have been an apostle after all this." 



m 




" While they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight." — Acts i, 9. 

"After the ascension their real work began. People were aroused 
everywhere, and thousands of converts were added to the Church 
in a single day. Churches grew rapidly, and it was not long till the 
name of Jesus was praised in all parts of the world." 



466 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

TALKING IN STRANGE TONGUES: 

Or, POWER FROM ON HIGH. 



" r W ^EN days after Jesus ascended there was an exciting time in 
Jerusalem. Shall I tell you about that?" 

-*- " Oh ! yes, yes !" came from the children, and Mrs. Reed 

also, so Grandpa began : 

" Can any of you tell to what I refer ?" 

" A big fire," answered Charley, without an instant's delay. 

" Pshaw! Charley ; will you ever sober down ?" replied Mary, who 
then added, " You tell us, Grandpa. We only spoil things by 
guessing." 

" When talking with His disciples in that upper room on the night 
in which He was betrayed, Jesus said a great deal about a Com- 
forter, whom He would send them. They were well enough satis- 
fied to have Jesus Himself stay right along, but He said it was 
expedient, or better for them that He should go away, because if He 
went this Comforter would be sent." 

"Whom did He mean by the Comforter?" asked Carrie. 

" We will see directly. He told them many great things this 
Comforter would do for them. He would bring to their remem- 
brance what Jesus had taught ; He would lead them into all truth ; 
He would teach them what to say ; He would reprove the evil doers 
in the world, and open their minds and hearts to the truth ; and in 
many other wonderful ways He would comfort the disciples and help 
them in their work." 

"But who is this Comforter ?" asked Charley, looking puzzled at 
what Grandpa was saying. 



TALKING IN STRANGE TONGUES. 467 

"We will see in a few minutes. The name Jesus gave this person 

vas the name used for those we call lawyers, who are men called to 

)ur aid when we are in legal trouble. They advise us, speak for us, 

and do for us all we may need. So this promised Helper was to do 

for the disciples." 

" Tell us who He is, please," said Carrie, in a coaxing way. 

" In a moment, darling. When the Lord had His last talk with 
the disciples, just before He ascended, He said: And behold, I 
send the promise of my Father upon you : but tarry ye in the city of 
Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high. He meant 
this promised Helper whose coming would give them power, and for 
this power they were to wait at Jerusalem. And now for His own 
explanation. In that same talk He said: Ye shall receive power 
after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you ; and ye shall be wit- 
nesses unto me, both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, 
and unto the uttermost part of the earth." 

" Oh ! the Holy Ghost we sing of, and hear of, is the Comforter," 
exclaimed Mary. "But, Grandpa, dear, I don't know just what this 
means yet." 

" Holy Ghost, or Holy Spirit, is the name given to that Divine 
person, or power, which, though unseen by us, teaches, helps, and 
comforts those who love the Lord Jesus. This power they were to 
have, and obedient to Jesus they waited for it ; not idly nor carelessly, 
but with prayer and hope, as they met together day by day. Ten 
days passed after Jesus ascended and the day of that great excite- 
ment, of which I spoke, arrived. It was known among the Jews as 
the day of Pentecost." 

" Pentecost !" shouted all at once. " And what is Pentecost ?" 

M The word means the fiftieth day. It was applied to the fiftieth 
day after the Passover. On this one day there was a joyful feast of 
the Jews in honor of the gathered harvest. Many Jews from other 
parts of the world stayed from the Passover for this festival, and then 
went to their homes." 



468 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



i{ What made the excitement on this day ?" asked Mary. " I am 
awfully anxious to get at it." 

" I will tell you. On this day Peter and the apostles, with about a 
hundred men and women, were together, praying. Suddenly, a 




" And there appeared unto them cloven tongues, like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them." — 

Acts ii, 3. 

rushing sound, like that of a tremendous wind, was heard. Looking 
up, they saw in the air above them what seemed to be little tongues 
of flame, and these descended and rested upon the disciples. This 
was a sign from God, showing them that the long-promised power 
had now come." 



TALKING IN STRANGE TONGUES. 469 

" But didn't these flames burn them ?" asked Charley, with evi- 
dent concern. 

" They were not flames, my boy ; but were in form and motion 
like flames. No sooner had these tongues rested on the disciples 
than they found themselves full of new power. The first change 
they noticed was their ability to speak fluently in languages they had 
never learned or even heard before." 

"What good was that?" asked Charley. 

" Much — very much. You remember I said many strangers waited 
over in Jerusalem to attend this joyous feast. So it was then ; from 
all parts of the known world there were devout men lodoino- in the 
Holy City. Turn to Acts ii, Mary, and read from verses 9-1 1 the 
nationalities represented there." 

With considerable stumbling and staggering among the names 
of the nations, Mary read the verses as follows: "Parthians, and 
Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judea, 
and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia* and Pamphylia, in 
Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of 
Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians." 

" Glad I didn't live in any of those places," exclaimed Charley. 

"Word went rapidly through the city as to what had occurred and 
these men came running in to see the strange sight, when, lo ! every 
man of them was preached to in his own mother-tongue. No won- 
der they were amazed and asked what it all meant. Explanation 
was ready. Peter's explanation only is given ; but the others gave 
the same, no matter in what language they said it. Peter told them, 
in answer to their questions, This is that which was spoken by the 
prophet Joel, And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, 
I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your 
daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and 
your old men shall dream dreams: and on my servants and on my 
handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit, and they 
shall prophesy." 
30 



470 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Oh, ho ! that was the promise of the Father, then — wasn't it ? 
He had promised all this by Joel long before Jesus came — hadn't 
He?" 

" That was it, Carrie. And every man was made to understand 
this, no matter what his lancniaee was." 

" There was some use in the languages, then — wasn't there ?" 
added the boy, in a convinced tone. 

"Indeed there was. And the disciples found another new power; 
they understood the Bible and the words of Jesus as they never did 
before ; now it was all clear and beautiful. And they had a new 
power in that they were made bold. They were terribly frightened 
when Jesus was crucified, but now they feared nobody; they spoke 
the truth with clearness and force to all their hearers. And the 
hearers felt this power; they felt that they were sinners, and they 
cried out, What shall we do ? When told to repent and be baptized, 
they did it at once, and in that one day three thousand persons joined 
the Church." 

"That was grand! It would not take long at that rate to go 
through the whole world," said Carrie. "But," she asked, after a 
moment's thought and with some concern, "did they all hold out as 
good and true members ?" 

"The narrative in Acts says they all continued steadfast in the 
apostles' doctrine and fellowship. People everywhere felt the power 
of those early disciples. And well they might ; for not only did they 
do what most church members do — go to church and behave in a 
proper manner — but they did far more, as you may see by looking 
at Acts iv, 34, 35." 

" I have it !" exclaimed Carrie. " It says this : Neither was there 
any among them that lacked ; for as many as were possessors of 
lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that 
were sold and laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution 
was made unto every man according as he had need." 

" That was a hard thing to do, I should say," remarked Mary. 




BRINGING IN THE MQNE.Y.. 



472 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

"To give up all your property for the good of others is more than 
most people will consent to." 

"So two members of that early Church found it. They had not 
the courage to do differently from others; so they attempted to de- 
ceive the apostles, pretending to lay the full price of their property 
at their feet while really keeping back a part of it for themselves. 
Who were they ?" 

"Ananias and Sapphira !" answered the girls, Charley bringing 
up the rear with the exclamation, "They were knocked out for telling 
a lie — weren't they ?" 

"They were stricken dead for agreeing together to deceive the 
apostles and cheat the treasury of the Church," answered Grandpa. 
" If that's what you mean, Charley, you are right." 

"That's it, Grandpa. You can understand a fellow every time." 

"Wasn't it rather severe, Grandpa, to strike them dead for such 
an offense as that?" asked Carrie, somewhat timidly, as if uncertain 
whether her question was precisely proper. 

"It was severe, undoubtedly. But their offense was very great; 
they lied to God really. Such hypocrisy and deception as theirs 
would quickly have ruined the Church if allowed to go unpunished; 
so God in this fearful manner checked it at once. It put a stop very 
effectually to what might have grown and become disastrous in that 
little company of disciples." 

" I've no doubt they deserved it, or it would not have happened ; 
but, oh my! I'm so sorry for them!" was Carrie's closing lament. 



POWER IN A NAME. 473 



POWER IN A NAME; 

Or, A LAME MAN CAUSED TO LEAP. 



" /^^\ N one of those days of joy in the early Church," began 
1 1 Grandpa, " Peter and John went to the Temple at the hour 
^-^ for morning prayer. At one of the entrances known as the 
Beautiful Gate a lame man sat begging. His poor feet were so 
crippled that he had never been able to walk or even stand on them. 
As Peter and John came near, he asked them to give him something, 
holding out his hand or his hat to receive it." 

"Just as beggars do now," exclaimed Charley. 

" Yes. When Peter and John stopped and looked at the man, he 
was sure they were about to give him something. Then Peter spoke 
and said to him in a loud voice, Silver and gold have I none, but such 
as I have give I thee : in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise 
up and walk." 

"And then what happened?" asked Carrie, eagerly, as Grandpa 
stopped. 

"Read it in Acts iii, 7, 8." 

Carrie quickly turned to the place named and read: "And he took 
him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet 
and ankle bones received strength. And he, leaping up, stood and 
walked and entered with them into the Temple, walking and leaping 
and praising God." 

" Hooray for him !" shouted the enthusiastic Charley; " he learned 
to walk quick, didn't he ?" 

"Rather so, I think," added Grandpa. "Walking, running, and 
jumping have to be learned usually, but this man gained his full 



47* 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



power so completely and was so glad that he bounded about as if 
he were crazy. His old crutches flew to the right and the left, and 
the people, seeing this unusual exhibition and hearing the man's 
shouts of joy, ran together, and thus in a few minutes an immense 



crowd was gathered." 




" Be gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them." — Acts iii, 5. 

" I should think so. It wouldn't take long to gather a crowd by 
such means in one of our streets," said Mary. 

" When Peter saw the crowd that gathered, he could not neglect 
the chance it gave him to tell about Jesus. He did tell about Him 




THE DISCARDED CRUTCHES. 



476 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STOKJ LS. 



most earnestly; but this stirred up the priests fearfully — such preach- 
ing, and that, too, within the Temple grounds, they would not permit. 
They were getting afraid that the followers of Jesus would take all 
the religious work of the day, leaving them nothing to do and nobody 
to rule. To stop this preaching the priests sent the Temple police, 
who quickly came upon Peter and John and arrested them — so they 
spent the night in jail." 

" Shame on them !" exclaimed Mary. " What had Peter and John 
done that they should be locked up? I'm indignant at such work." 

" No harm came of it, however, out rather good. It made a great 
excitement, and the rulers were afraid to punish Peter and John. 
Their cause was far too popular just then, and the healing of this 
lame man had made them more than ever popular. Then, too, 
Peter's little sermon before he was arrested had won immense num- 
bers of converts." 

" But how did they get out of jail ?" asked Carrie, with much con- 
cern. 

" They spent the night there, and the next morning were brought 
before the Sanhedrim. Annas and Caiphas, those unjust judges who 
had condemned Jesus, were there. They were bitter and blood- 
thirsty as ever, but they were on the unpopular side and had to be 
very cautious now. They began by asking Peter, By what power 
or by what name have ye done this ? That question gave Peter a 
chance. He who had so lately denied Jesus made good amends for 
it now. He launched forth in his reply, and gave them such a 
sermon on Jesus as made their ears tingle." 

" What did he say ? Tell us about it, Grandpa ; it's getting awfully 
interesting," urged Carrie. 

" You will find it in brief in Acts iv." 

"Here it is !" exclaimed Mary. " I will read it." So she read: 
"Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of 
the people, and elders of Israel, if we this day be examined of the 
good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made 



POWER IN A NAME. 477 



whole ; be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, 
that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, 
whom God raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand 
here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought 
of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither 
is there salvation in any other ; for there is none other name under 
heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." 

"That's got the ring, I tell you," said Charley, with his enthusias- 
tic slap of the hand on his knee. " No more scare for Peter now ; 
no more, no more !" sang he to one of the familiar airs of the Jubilee 
Songs. 

" True, Charley. The scare was on the other side now. Peter 
made such an impression that the members of the Sanhedrim were 
puzzled, and asked among themselves, What shall we do ?" 

" What did they do ? The old tyrants ! That time they got into 
a hole and pulled it in on top of themselves, didn't they ? Pity they 
ever ox>t out aeain !" 

" Charley, Charley, what do you mean ?" asked Mrs. Reed, in 
seeming distress at the boy's queer talk. 

" Nothing, mother ; nothing, only Peter's all right. Tell him I say 
so ! Go on, please, Grandpa." 

" Peter was all right this time, Charley. The Council made up its 
mind that it could do nothing but try to scare him, so Peter was 
told not to dare to speak at all, or to teach in the name of Jesus. 
This brought up both Peter and John, who plumply and plainly said : 
Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more 
than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things 
which we have seen and heard." 

" Good again !" shouted the boy. 

"After another effort to scare Peter and John the Council let them 
go. At once they sought their own people, the disciples, and told 
all that had happened. Nobody was frightened, but all were the 
more determined to be faithful and true. 



478 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



FREED FROM PRISON; 

Or, DOORS OPENED IN A STRANGE WAY. 



G 



RANDPA," began Charley, "did Peter ever get into prison 
again ?" 

"Yes, my boy; and on one occasion— some ten years 
after the case of which I told you last night— he got into prison, but 
he also got out of it in a very strange way." 

"Tell us about that, please," said Carrie, in her winning way that 
always prevailed with Grandpa ; the others adding, " Please do." 

" So many people had become Christians," began Grandpa, " in 
the ten years following the ascension of Jesus that many wicked 
rulers became alarmed about them and tried to destroy them. Chief 
among these was one Herod, who had come to be governor of Judea. 
He captured James, the brother of John, and, for no crime whatever^ 
beheaded him. Seeing the Jews were greatly pleased with this 
wicked zeal, he captured Peter also and determined to kill him in 
the same way." 

" How cruel !" exclaimed Mary. " And yet hundreds of Christians 
were served just so in those days — were they not ?" 

"Yes; thousands and tens of thousands of them— women and 
children as well as men. Herod knew how great a man Peter was 
in the Church; so to keep him very safely he put him in charge of 
sixteen soldiers, two of whom were in his cell all the time, he being 
chained to both of them. Time went on till the night before the day 
appointed for his death. Peter was neither afraid nor unhappy in 
the prospect of this final suffering, for that last night he lay asleep 
between the two soldiers who were his death-watch." 



FREED FROM PRISON. 479 

" But, Grandpa, how unhappy Peter's friends must have been, 
knowing where he was and what was so soon to happen !" 

" Yes, Mary ; I have no doubt they were unhappy. But, like true 
and good people, they went to God with their trouble. Day and 
night they prayed ; and the last night of his appointed time came, 
but he was still in prison ; God had not delivered him. So anxious 
were they that none of them went to their homes that night, but they 
stayed together praying for their dear friend." 

"They were more distressed, I guess, than Peter himself was," 
said Carrie. 

" Yes. He seemed wholly resigned to God's will. They did not 
see how they could do without him ; the idea that on the next day 
he should be led forth from prison and his head be hacked from his 
body was more than they could endure. But what could they do ? 
They had but one Friend who could really help them ; that was God, 
and to Him they went." 

" Did they kill Peter the next day, Grandpa ?" asked Charley, im- 
patient to know the result. 

" No ; they did not kill him. And just there is the wonderful part 
of the story. While Peter slept and all the prison-guards were in 
their appointed places, suddenly the prison was filled with light and 
an angel appeared in Peter's cell. In an instant he aroused Peter, 
lifted him up as his chains fell off, helped him to throw his garments 
about himself, led him out through the doors and orates, all 'of which 
opened of themselves seemingly, brought him into the public street, 
walked with him till he was safely away from the prison, and then 
left him alone and free." 

"Good!" shouted Charley, slapping his hand vigorously upon his 
knee. " Good ! I'm glad they didn't get a chance to chop Peter to 
pieces." 

" What did Peter do when the angel left him, Grandpa ? He must 
have been sorely puzzled by this wonderful performance," added 
Carrie. 



480 GRANDPA GOODWINS STORIES. 



" He was puzzled. First he thought lie was dreaming ; then he 
was bewildered. He did not know what to make of it. But directly 
he came fairly to himself and felt sure it was the Lord's work. Alter 
a moment's thought he started off for the house of a disciple whose 
name was Mary, and whose son was the well-known disciple, Mark, 
the same who afterward wrote one of the gospels. Peter knew he 
would find a welcome at that house. Nobody was asleep there. It 
was midnight, but they were all up praying for Peter. When his 
knock at the door was heard they were startled ; perhaps they were 
frightened. They may have thought an officer of the law had come 
to arrest some other of their company, and carry him off to prison 
and to death." • 

" I don't wonder they were scared ; I would have been, I'm sure," 
said Carrie. 

"And yet, my dear, a little girl- of that company was brave enough 
to go out to the gate, dark though the night was, and listen, and 
inquire, to find whether officers were there, or who it was that 
knocked." 

" She was brave," exclaimed the girls. 

"And her bravery was so pleasing to God that He put her name 
in the Bible. It is said in Acts xii, 13, A damsel came to hearken, 
named Rhoda." 

"Rhoda?" repeated Carrie. "I never heard that name before. 
What does it mean ?" 

"It means a rose. Her good, brave act was fragrant as a rose, and 
so long as people love the Bible they will know her as a brave girl 
whom God honored." 

" I ouess she wasn't loner in letting Peter in, was she ?" said 
Charley. 

"Well, yes ; rather long. When she found out it was he, she was 
so pleased that she did not stop to let him in, but ran into the house 
to tell the good news." 

" Ha ! ha !" laughed Charley. " And let Peter stand there in the 




RESCUED By AN ANGEL. 



482 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

cold, where the police might catch him and haul him back to prison. 
She was smart, she was." 

"But Peter was not discouraged; he kept on knocking. He had 
spoken to her and she had recognized his voice, but then she ran off. 
He might have felt cross at her, but he did not. He waited and 
knocked, but Rhoda was back again in the house telling the people 
about it." 

"Ha! ha!" laughed Charley again, "just like a girl, you bet! 
— forget the very thing she went to do." 

"If she had a brother," answered Mary, with a laugh, "I'll war- 
rant he sat still and let her run to the gate, night though it was. 
That's just like a boy." 

" She ran in, as I said," resumed Grandpa, " and Peter kept on 
knocking. The people in the house thought the girl had gone 
crazy. Some thought it was his ghost, supposing him to be already 
dead. But she was positive that it was Peter himself. Then they 
went out and opened the gate, and the man they had been praying 
for was a free man among them. They were both surprised and 
glad. Peter then told them what the angel had done and how he had 
set him free." 

" But didn't they try to catch Peter again ?" asked Charley. 

" I suppose they did," answered Grandpa, " but after this talk at 
Mark's house Peter left Jerusalem for another place, where Herod 
could not reach him. Not long after this Herod died suddenly, and 
Peter was then free to return to Jerusalem." 

"Well, that's the grandest get-out ever I heard of," exclaimed the 
boy. 



PICKING UP A PASSENGER. 4'83 

PICKING UP A PASSENGER; 

Ok, THE RIGHT MAN IN THE RIGHT PLACE. 



" *~~ ""^HGSE early Church people must have had real jolly times," 

began Charley, in one of his merriest moods. They re- 

-*- mind me of what the mission-school girl said. She liked 

Old Testament lessons best, because they had more fun and fighting 

in them ; but Peter and the rest of them had lots of this." 

" Charley Reed !" exclaimed Mary, in a reproving tone, "will you 
ever learn to respect Bible people ?" 

"I do respect them. Wouldn't harm 'em for the world. I just 
mean that they are like us. I used to think them all angels without 
any feathers, but they're just men and women, and boys and girls, 
same as we are. I like them. Please, Grandpa, tell us about some 
more of them." 

After this rattling start Grandpa rubbed his glasses, smiled at the 
boy's boyishness, placed his glasses on his nose, and began : 

"If by jolly times Charley means they had times full of fun and 
frolic, then he is wrong. If he means, as I think he does, that they 
passed through strange and exciting scenes, then he is right." 

" That's it, Grandpa, you were a boy yourself. Girls can't under- 
stand us, can they?" 

" The leaders of the Church in those early days were very earnest 
workers. At times they seemed very odd men. There was one 
named Philip, who flew around from place to place, always at work, 
and everywhere successful in doing good. One time he was busy 
in Samaria with a great revival of religion, but busy though he was, 
he felt it his duty to start right off for Jerusalem, some sixty or sev- 



48* GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



enty miles away. From there he felt he must go off in a south- 
westerly direction by a certain road which led to a place called Gaza. 
Why this should be done he did not know, nor did he stop to ask. 
Orf he started, and in a few hours he was tramping' along the ap- 
pointed road, looking for something to do for the Lord." 

" Well, that was a queer way to act," said Mary. " Why didn't he 
wait till he knew what he was to do ?" 

" Simply because the Lord told him to Arise, and go. To go, was 
what he had to do in the case. If he were to sit at that roadside in 
idleness, to tramp it in weariness, or to work there at the hardest of 
work, lie was ready. As Tennyson in his splendid poem says of 
that brave troop, the Light Brigade : 

" ' Theirs not to make reply, 
Theirs not to reason why, 
Theirs but to do and die.' 

So Philip went, obeying orders without a question,, and not know- 
ing for what he was sent." 

" That was grand of him, I'm sure," said Carrie. "And what did 
happen when he got there ?" 

" By and by he saw a chariot coming down the road from Jerusa- 
lem. In it rode a man who was a high officer under one of the 
queens in Africa. Around the chariot were soldiers and servants, 
for so great a man never traveled without a suitable escort. As the 
chariot came near Philip saw that the man was reading the Scrip- 
tures, and he felt it his duty to go and speak to him." 

" Without an introduction ?" asked Carrie. 

" Yes, without that. So Philip ran to the chariot, and heard the 
man reading aloud. He was reading in the fifty-third chapter of 
Isaiah, about the sufferings of Christ. The exact words Philip heard 
him read were these : He was led as a sheep to the slaughter ; and 
like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened He not His mouth: 
In His humiliation His judgment was taken away: and who shall 



PICKING UP A PASSENGER. 



485 



declare His generation ? for His life is taken from the earth. With- 
out a moment's d-day Philip asked him if he understood what he 
was reading. The man frankly said he did not so much as know of 
whom the prophet was writing. Then he asked Philip to step up 
into the chariot and ride with him." 




g^^gawiw 



ppg^liypl 



" lie desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him" — Acts viii, 31. 

" So he picked up a passenger, as they used to say in the country, 
where we were last summer." 

" Yes, Mary, and a true helper the picked-up passenger proved. 
Philip understood that text. He knew that the prophet spoke there 
31 



48G GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



of Jesus, and he went on telling about Jesus to his noble hearer. So 
clear did Philip make the truth that the man understood and believed 
it at once." 

" Good !" exclaimed Mary. " He was the right man in the right 
place that time." 

" And did he become a Christian ?" asked Carrie, seeming sur- 
prised that such quick work could be made with a man. 

" Yes, he became a Christian. But it is only fair to remember that 
this man was a devout and intelligent worshiper of (iod. From his 
home, away off in Ethiopia, he had gone all the way to Jerusalem for 
no other object than to worship. While there he had bought a roll 
of parchment on which the prophecy of Isaiah was written, and he 
had paid well for it, I'm sure." 

'' Written ?" interrupted Charley, " why didn't he buy a printed 
Bible and be done with it ?" 

" There were no printed Bibles. Printing was not known for hun- 
dreds of years after that, and there was no Bible, except the Old 
Testament. It cost him more to buy that copy of Isaiah than a large 
and elegant family Bible would cost us. He bought all he could, and 
he did well to get that prophecy, which tells so much and so clearly 
about the Saviour." 

" Why," exclaimed Mary, " we can get beautiful Bibles for fifty or 
sixty cents ; Isaiah and all the other books, too !" 

" What did they do after the man became a Christian ?" asked 
Charley. 

" They jogged along down a very beautiful road, which even now 
abounds in flowers, and is called the Valley of Roses. After a few 
miles they came to a fountain. Philip had told his friend of the 
command Jesus gave, that His disciples should be baptized ; when 
he saw the water, therefore, he said, See, here is water : what doth 
hinder me to be baptized ? There was nothing hindered him. He 
believed on Jesus ; there was water ; and there was a man who could 
properly do the service. It is then said, in Acts viii, And he com- 



PICKING UP A PASSENGER. 487 

manded the chariot to stand still : and they went down both into the 
water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. The ac- 
count in Acts then says, He went on his way rejoicing." 




PHYLIP'S FOUNTAIN ON ROAD TO GAZA. 

" That was too lovely," said Carrie. " He was just as willing to 
obey God as Philip was. They were just splendid, both of therrL. I 
do honor such men." 



488 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" Yes, and there was more in it than their obedience. This new 
convert went to his home in Africa, carrying the Scriptures in his 
hand and the gospel in his heart. When there he told what he had 
learned of Jesus, - and others were led to the truth. So it came to 
pass that Philip's odd journey resulted in sending the gospel to the 
very heart of Africa." 

" It may interest the children," said their mother, " for me to read 
a little sketch of that fountain. I found it in a work describing Pal- 
estine. It says: The fountain itself is a rich, solid structure of 
elaborately carved white marble. It stands on the face of the hill, 
the water spouting out profusely at a point about fifteen feet from 
the ground, and falling into two basins before it reaches the bed of 
the valley. The water is finally conducted into a large stone reser- 
voir, about twenty feet square and quite deep, into which a flight of 
stone steps descends. If this fountain existed in apostolic times, 
and if the eunuch came upon it here, it is not strange that he should 
have said, See, here is water : What doth hinder me to be bap- 
tized?" 

"I've just found," said Mary, "a hymn we sung in church a few 
Sundays ago. These men remind me of it. It says: 

" In all my Lord's appointed ways 
My journey I'll pursue; 
Hinder me not ! ye much loved saints, 
For I must go with you. 

"Through floods and flames if Jesus lead, 
I'll follow where He goes; 
Hinder me not ! shall be my cry, 
Though earth and hell oppose." 

"Well quoted, Mary. Those are very appropriate verses," was 
Grandpa's closing remark. 



A BONFIRE OF BOOKS. 489 

A BONFIRE OF BOOKS; 

Or, STRANGE HONORS FOR FAITHFUL PREACHERS. 



" 1 HAVE told you about several early workers in the Church," 
began Grandpa. " There is another of whom I want to tell 
-*- you a few things, for he was a wonderful. man." 

" I know whom you mean, Grandpa," said Carrie, with a pleased 
confidence. "You mean Paul, don't you? I know he was a very 
wonderful man." 

" Yes, dear ; you are right. He was a man of great ability and 
thorough education. He once was very active in persecuting the 
Church, but at last he became just as active, and, indeed, more so in 
building it up. He made long journeys through countries where the 
gospel had never been preached, and founded many churches. In 
his first missionary journey he and Barnabas, who traveled with him, 
came to a heathen city called Lystra, in what is now called Asia 
Minor." 

"I know where that is," said Carrie. "It is north of the eastern 
end of the Mediterranean Sea. I saw it in my geography a few days 



ago. 



"I am glad you remember this location. When Paul and Barna- 
bas reached Lystra they preached to the people every day. While 
at this work they came across a man who had been lame all his life. 
This man believed what he heard preached, and Paul determined to 
cure his lameness. Looking at him steadily, Paul said in a loud 
voice, Stand upright on thy feet. In an instant the man both leaped 
and walked." - 

" Just as Peter's man did at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple." 



490 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" Exactly, Carrie. No sooner did the people see what was done 
than they began to shout, The gods are come down to us ! The gods 
are come down to us ! Some time before this one of their poets had 
told the story that Jupiter and Mercury, two supposed gods of the 

■, • i - — 




" The priest of Jupiter 



. brought oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done 
sacrifice with the people." — Acts xiv, 13. 



Romans, did once visit that country in the form of men. When the 
people saw Paul's wonderful act they supposed that he and his com- 
panion were these same gods come back again." 

" That was grand, wasn't it ?" said Charley. " I'd like somebody 
to think me an old heathen god, I would." 



A BONFIRE OF BOOKS. 491 

" Near to Lystra a temple had been built in honor of Jupiter. In 
a few minutes the priest who had charge of this temple came hur- 
rying along with oxen, garlands, and incense, ready to offer sacrifice 
to the two preachers. When they saw this, however, they protested, 
rending their clothes, as people then did to express great horror, 
and declaring themselves not to be gods who might be worshiped, 
but simply men." 

" Pshaw !" shouted Charley, " I'd have let them do it, just a little, 
anyhow. I'd have had some fun." 

" But God would not have seen much fun in Paul and Barnabas 
allowing men to worship them. It would have been very wrong in 
them to permit it. Had they allowed it, how could they have turned 
about and preached the gospel to those men ? As it was, however, 
Paul turned his refusal to be worshiped into a good, honest talk 
about the true God. ' He was willing to refuse honor for himself 
that the Lord might be honored the more." 

" He was a splendid man, wasn't he, Grandpa ? I love to hear 
about such people," said Mary. 

" I'm glad you do, my dear, and I hardly need remind you that to 
be like them is even better than to love to hear of them." 

" I want to be like them, I'm sure," was her answer ; •' but," added 
she, in a somewhat uncertain way, " I'm sure I come far short, though 
I try hard." 

" Try, try again, Mary. Paul did not become great in a day, nor 
can you. But in much the same line I will tell of a remarkable bon- 
fire in honor of Paul." 

" That's the ticket," shouted Charley. " Bonfires and big times J 
They're what make boys fat." 

" A bonfire," Carrie added, as if in doubt whether she understood 
aright. 

" Yes. And it came about in this way. When Paul was preach- 
ing in the city called Ephesus he did a great many wonderful works. 
There were a large number of men living there who called them- 



492 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



selves magicians, and pretended to do magical acts. They were in 
great favor with the people, and as a class were quite rich. Some 
of them tried one day to cast an evil spirit out of a man, but instead 
of doing it they only enraged the man, who leaped upon them, beat- 
ing them furiously and tearing the clothes from their backs, so that 
they fled for safety, battered, bruised, half-naked, and glad to o-et off 
Ivith their lives." 

" Ha ! ha !" roared Charley. " Got enough for their pains that 
time, did they ?" 

" Yes, they got enough. Of course, everybody heard about it, 
and it quite disgraced the magicians, while Paul, and the Lord whom 
he preached, were the more honored. So it came to pass that many 
of those who had practiced these curious arts gave them up entirely. 
They had very costly books of instruction on these subjects, all of 
which they brought to Paul, and burned them publicly in the street. 
In this way those men showed that they gave up their old ways, 
turned to the true God, and put themselves under Paul's control for 
all the future." 

" That was making thorough work of it, wasn't it, Grandpa ?" 
asked Mary. 

" Yes. What they burned was of great value. We are told the 
price of the burned books was fifty thousand pieces of silver. For 
how many pieces of silver was Jesus betrayed ?" 

" For thirty," answered all. 

" And about how much of our money was that?" 

" Not more than twenty -five dollars," answered Mary ; Carrie 
adding, "It may have been as little as four dollars and fifty cents." 

"Probably twenty-five dollars was the sum. If the same piece of 
silver is meant in the account of the bonfire, how much money did it 
cost?" 

"About forty thousand dollars," said Mary. 

" My stars !" shouted Charley. "That was a whopper of a bon- 
fire ! Cost forty thousand dollars. Whew!" 




A BONFIRE OF COSTLY BOOKS. 



494 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



" Remember that any book in those days cost an immense sum of 
money. They did not know how to print at that time. Every book 
had to be written with a pen from beginning to end. And very few 
men could write at all, much less write well enough to make a book. 
Magic was an unusual subject, too. Few men could make a book 
on that ; so, for these reasons a few books might easily have cost 
the sum named. All their books, however, were brought by these 
men and publicly burned." 

" Why didn't they sell them, if they didn't want them any more ?" 
inquired mercantile Charley. 

" They believed the books to be bad, and they would not allow 
others to be harmed by them. What was not good for themselves 
to keep they would not sell to others. That was right. Better lose 
thousands of dollars than do wrong yourself or harm the soul of 
another." 

"They were more conscientious," said Mary, "than a boy I read 
of. He was gathering a lot of toad-stools into a basket. A man 
who saw him said, ' Those are not mushrooms ; they are toad-stools, 
and are rank poison.' ' It don't make any difference,' said the boy, 
'I'm going to sell them.'" 

" Good !" exclaimed Grandpa, rising from his chair, and Charley 
said: 

" We'll, that's the jolliest bonfire story I ever heard. I'll tell the 
boys about that to-morrow, you bet!" And so the evening party 
broke up. 



IN THE PATH OF DUTY. 495 

IN THE PATH OF DUTY; 

Or, TEARS AND TERRORS POWERLESS. 



" r I" ^ELL us more about Paul, Grandpa," was Carrie's opening 
request. "We love Paul, and want to know more about 
-*- him and his work." 

"Time forbids that I tell you much, grand as he is to talk about. 
But I will tell you how firm he was amid tears and terrors as he went 
on in his path of duty. After he had made several missionary jour- 
neys, he decided to go once more to Jerusalem, though he knew the 
Jews there hated him fearfully and would try to kill him. His friends 
knew this too, and did all they could to dissuade him from going." 

" Strange that he should run into danger," said Mary. 

" He did not run into it blindly or willfully; he felt it to be a duty, 
and that was enough for him.' Where duty called he went, regard- 
less of every inducement to stay away. For instance, the vessel on 
which he was sailing stopped at Miletus, the seaport of Ephesus, 
where Paul had many friends. He sent word to Ephesus, and a lot 
of the church folks came to see him. He told them where he was 
going, and that he knew bonds and afflictions awaited him there ; 
but, said he, none of these things move me, neither count I my life 
dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the 
ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus," 

" That seems very strange," said Mary. "I don't see how any one 
can be willing to give up life ; but good people can, I suppose." 

"After talking with them in this way and telling them many im- 
portant duties, Paul started on his voyage. The story in Acts is 
then told in these words: And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled 



496 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

down and prayed with them all. And they all wept sore, and fell on 
Paul's neck and kissed him, sorrowing most of all for the words which 
he spake, that they should see his face no more. And they accom- 
panied him unto the ship." 




" They all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him." — Acts xx, 38. 

"That was very sad. They must have loved him most tenderly." 

" Yes, Carrie, it was sad, but it did not delay Paul for a moment. 

At Tyre, where the ship next stopped, a similar scene took place. 

At Caesarea, their next stop, the disciples were so urgent that lie 

should not go into danger that he said to them, What mean ye to 



IN THE PATH OF DUTY. 497 

weep and to break mine heart ? for I am ready not to be bound only, 
but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. So 
they had to submit, and Paul went on to Jerusalem." 

"And did they harm him when he arrived there?" asked Carrie, 
with almost tearful interest. 

" Yes. A few days after his arrival he went into the Temple with 
some friends, and at once a company of evil-minded men got up a 
commotion about it and raised a great stir. Excitement grew, a mob 
gathered, Paul was hustled out of the Temple, the gates were slammed 
shut after him, and the mob was about to beat him to death." 

" Where were the police?" asked Charley, starting up as if he would 
run for an officer. 

"They were not far off; and in time to save Paul's life their chief 
captain, with his soldiers, ran upon the mob, scattering it and rescu- 
ing Paul, whom they were even then beating unmercifully. Not 
knowing- who Paul was or what he had done, the officers handcuffed 
him and led him away to their station in the castle near by. A great 
crowd followed hooting and yelling, some saying one thing and some 
another, so that all was confusion and uproar." 

"A regular row, wasn't it, Grandpa?" 

" Well, yes, Charley ; I suppose it was. When they came to the 
entrance of the castle, the mob was so violent that the soldiers had 
to carry Paul up the steps, the people yelling as they once had done 
against Jesus, Away with him ! away with him !" 

"What a set!" exclaimed Carrie. "The world would have been 
the better if somebody had made away with them." 

" Paul was not scared. He reached the top steps and then asked 
permission to address the people. When the captain heard Paul 
speak as a gentleman and found out who he was, he allowed him to 
address them. Paul did speak, and so much to the point that the 
people fairly howled with rage. To save his life the captain locked 
him up in the castle. After this he was never again a free man, but 
he was always noble, God-fearing, and courageous." 



498 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



"Did Paul never get out of prison after that?"' asked Mary. 
" He never ceased to be' a prisoner, though great liberty was gen- 
erally allowed him." 

"Tell us all about it," demanded the children. 
"The next day after Paul's arrest he was taken before the Jewish 
Council for a hearing, but these men were so unfair that Paul had no 
chance of justice. In a little while they became so excited that the 
chief captain, fearing Paul would be killed, took him by force again 
to the castle. The next day more than forty men took an oath that 
they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed him." 

"The vile fellows!" exclaimed Mary. "It was outrageous that 
they should act so." 

"It was indeed. But their plot came to the knowledge of the 
chief captain, who ordered out his soldiers, and that night at nine 
o'clock, under an escort of four hundred and seventy men, Paul was 
started for the residence of the Governor at Caesarea, some sixty or 
seventy miles away." 

" Why did they send so many men ?" asked Charley. 
"Because the Roman government always did things in a strono- 
way. A mob had threatened this man's life, and the chief captain 
meant to protect him and awe them. At Caesarea Paul lay in prison, 
but with considerable liberty, for more than two years. The Gover- 
nor and his friends often talked with him, but they hoped he would 
offer them money to let him go free. At last a new Governor came 
into power. He looked into Paul's case and would have discharged 
him, but Paul as a Roman citizen had demanded a trial before Caesar 
the Emperor, as was his right. To the Emperor the new Governor 
decided he should go, therefore, and in this way Paul was sent our 
of Palestine, and finally reached Rome, which was then the great 
capital city of the world." 

"Tell us about that, Grandpa," urged his little hearers. 
" Not to-night," darlings," said he. " It is too long a story, includ- 
ing a shipwreck and many other items. To-morrow night we may." 




ASSAILED BY THE MOB. 



600 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

THE IMPERIAL CITY: 

Or, AT THE END OF THE COURSE. 



YOU promised us another talk about Paul," began Charley; 
" about a shipwreck, too, and I'm awfully anxious to hear it. 
I stove a hole in that old boat on the mill-pond last sum- 
mer; that was the nearest to shipwreck that ever I came." 

"Paul came nearer than that, my boy," answered Grandpa, with a 
look of amusement. " His boat actually went to pieces." 

"Tell us about it, please do," urged Carrie and Mary. 

" When the new Governor at Csesarea came into office, he quickly 
arranged to send Paul to Rome. In company with a few personal 
friends and some other prisoners, and in charge of a squad of Roman 
soldiers commanded by a centurion named Julius, they set sail in a 
little coasting vessel, which, after a slow voyage, reached Myra, a city 
of Asia Minor. On the way they touched at Sidon, where Paul went 
ashore and had a delightful time with his friends." 

"Why, wasn't he a prisoner?" asked Charley. 

"Yes, but he was not a common culprit who would attempt to es- 
cape. He was treated more as a friend and companion by Julius. 
At Myra they took a larger ship which was bound for Italy and was 
laden with wheat. Including sailors, soldiers, and passengers, there 
were two hundred and seventy-six persons on board. It was late in 
the season. Winter was at hand with its rough weather, and those 
vessels were very clumsy and unseaworthy. They were not rigged 
like our snips. The sails were fastened to great yards which were 
hauled up to. the top of the masts, leaving the sails hang from them 
to catch the wind. The steering was done by two immense paddles, 



THE IMPERIAL CITY. 



501 



or oars, one on each side of the stern. Some vessels were fitted for 
oars to row with also. No sooner had they started than they were 
driven out of their course, and reaching a harbor called Fair Havens, 
in the island of Crete, Paul urged them to winter there ; but the 
weather just then seemed good, so they did not take Paul's advice, 





ANCIENT WAR VESSEL. WITH SAILS AND OARS. 

though he told them they would be wrecked. Hardly had they started 
when a terrible storm broke upon them, driving them out of their 
course again and into danger from two great shoals which all the 
sailors of that day dreaded. For two weeks they were tossed and 
driven, not seeing sun or stars, and the compass not teing known, 
they had nothing to guide them in steering the vessel." 
32 



502 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

" They must have been terribly frightened," exclaimed Carrie. 

"That beats my old boat on the mill-pond," said Charley. 

•' When matters were at the worst and all hands despaired of being 
saved, Paul began to comfort them, assuring them that though the 
vessel would be lost, yet all the crew and passengers should be 
saved." 

"How did Paul know that?" inquired Charley. 

"Read Paul's own explanation from Acts xxvii, 23-26." 

Carrie found the place in a moment and read : " For there stood 
by me this night the angel of God, whose I am and whom I serve, 
saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar, and lot 
God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. Wherefore, sirs, 
be of o-ood cheer ; for I believe God that it shall be even as it was 
told me. Howbeit, we must be cast upon a certain island." 

"Soon after this the sailors found they were in shallow water, and 
that it was fast getting more shallow. It was night. They could 
not tell where they were, so they cast out four anchors, and by these 
held the ship till day dawned. They could then see land, but what 
land they did not know. Discovering what they thought was a har- 
bor, they tried to run the ship into it, but the bow struck the beach 
and the stern was broken to pieces by the fury of the waves. Those 
who could swim jumped overboard and swam for the shore. Others 
reached it on pieces of boards and by other helps, and at last all 
were saved." 

" What did they do ?" " Was there anybody there to hurt them ?" 
" How did they get along ?" were some of the questions asked at 
this point of the story, to which Grandpa answered : 

" It proved that they were on the island now called Malta, at its 
northeastern part, in what is now known as St. Paul's Bay. The 
island was inhabited, but the wrecked men were treated very kindly. 
Paul did great service there by healing sick persons and preaching 
the gospel. They stayed all winter, and then took a ship bound for 
Italy, where, in a few days, they landed at Puteoli, on the Bay of 



504 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

Naples. Here friends met Paul, and after a few brief delays he 
went on to the Imperial City, Rome, where Carsar, the ruler of the 
world at that time, had his palace and made his home." 

"Is Rome now like it was then ?" asked Mary. "It would be a 
great pleasure to see the streets along which Paul went, and the 
houses where he stayed." 

" The street along which he passed from Puteoli to Rome can be 
seen. It is called the Appian Way, and though now lined with ruins 
and to a great extent deserted, yet it reminds one of Paul at every 
step. In Rome Paul lived for a time in his own hired house, but in 
charge of a soldier. He was heard before Caesar also in the royal 
Hall of Judgment. During these years Paul wrote several of his- 
epistles, and had with him as a companion and assistant Timothy, 
whom he loved to call his son in the gospel." 

"And then what happened?" asked Carrie, all the party sitting 
with breathless interest. 

"On the last days of Paul," continued Grandpa, "history' is not 
clear. There is some reason to think he was set free for a time. 
More likely he was allowed to go on parole, as it is called ; that is r 
on his word of honor to come back when wanted. Meanwhile, a 
neAv and blood-thirsty Emperor, Nero, had come to the throne. He 
began fiercely to persecute Christians. Directly Paul came under 
his cruel attention, and soon he was sentenced to death. He was- 
dignified and calm as the end drew near. Some of his most tender 
messages were written when he was about to die ; that, for instance,, 
of which I spoke once to you, where he says : The time of my de- 
parture is at hand. I have fought a good fight ; I have finished my 
course ; I have kept the faith. The time came ; he was ready to be 
offered ; he was led to the place of execution ; he laid his neck on 
the block ; the sword of the executioner severed the head from his 
body ; he was dead !" 

"Dear, crood Paul !" exclaimed Carrie, with tearful eyes. "He 
was just splendid !" 




THE PRISONER AND HIS COMPANION. 



506 G RAX DP A GOOD WIN ' S STOIU1.S. 



LESSONS FROM NATURE; 

Ok, NEW VIEWS OF OLD SUBJECTS. 



" r I a O-NIGHT I will talk about three pictures which I found to- 
day among my papers. By their help we may gain some 

-*- new views of old subjects." With this opening remark, 
Grandpa laid a picture upon the table, and asked the children to look 
at it carefully, and say what they made of it. 

" It looks like a menagerie," said Charley. 

" Pshaw !" exclaimed Mary. " A rather small menagerie. Why, 
it's a caravan in a desert. They have stopped for rest and lunch 
under the shadow of that great rock. Isn't that so, Grandpa ?" 

"You are right. In the distance you see the glare of the sun, and 
other camels and men coming up to rest in the cool of this shelter. 
Such a spot is a great relief to travelers in those wide desert 
stretches. Hot, weary, hungry, and thirsty, as these parties must 
certainly be, they hail with joy every such shelter." 

" What has this picture to do with Bible stories ?" asked Carrie. 

"Turn to Isaiah xxxii, 2, and find your own answer." 

Carrie turned and read: " And a man shall be as an hiding-place 
from the wind, and a covert from the tempest ; as rivers of water in 
a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." 

" Who is the man who is all this ?" asked Grandpa. " See what he 
is — a hiding-place from the wind ; a covert, or place of concealment, 
from the tempest ; as rivers in a dry place ; r.s the shadow of a great 
rock in a wearisome land. Who is the ma* who is all this ?" 

"Jesus !" exclaimed every one of the party. 

"Yes. And what are these travelers finding under this rock?** 



jLESSOiYS from nature. 



507 



" Rest ;" " coolness ;" " refreshment ;" " time to eat ;" " time to talk;" 
"a good time generally," and other answers were popped in by the 
children, as they looked at the picture, after which Grandpa asked : 




RESTING IN THE SHADE. 



" What, then, is Jesus to us ?" \ 

"Everything that is nice," answered Carrie. "Everything that 
makes life's cares less and its burdens lighter, and that fits us to pt> 
on with fresh strength and new courage," added Mrs. Reed. 



60S 



GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 





" First rate," ansu 
Grandpa, "and much 
more might be said about 
Him. Just as these trav- 

- elers are cool and com- 
fortable, though sur- 
rounded by a burning 
desert, so the Lord's 
people are happy and at 
rest, though in a sinful 
and sorrowful world." 

Grandpa, at this point, 
laid out another picture, 
and asked the children 
to look at it. "Why," 
said Mary, in an instant, 
"that's a lily of the valley. 
I know them, and they 
are very sweet." 

" What else can be said 
of them ?" 

"They are very mod 
little flowers," ventured 
Carrie. " They have no 
high stems lifting them 
away up in the air : and 
the flowers are so small 
and beautifully formed, 
and so delicate of color ; 
and then they don't turn 
their faces up as if they 
wanted to stare at you, 
but they nod their pretty 



ZESSOlVS FR OM NA TURE. 509 



heads as if hiding, and so they wave in the breeze, and are ever so 
nice and modest." 

" Well said, my dears. From what you tell me may I say they are 
not gaudy, conspicuous flowers, but they are modest, lowly, gentle, 
beautiful of color and form, and withal very sweet of fragrance ?" 

"Yes, yes," was the unanimous verdict. 

" Well, now, in the Song of Solomon the Lord says, I am the lily 
of the valleys. What does He want us to learn from this ?" 

" That He is humble and lowly," said Mary. " That He is very 
beautiful and sweet," said Carrie. " That He touches our finest 
feelings, and affords us the most delicate joys," said Mrs. Reed. 
'" That He's nice to have around the house," said Charley. 

"Correct; everyone of you is right. Jesus is all that. But do 
not forget that while He is the lily of the valleys, at the same time He 
is the shadow of a great rock." 

" He's both big and little, great and small, high and low, strong 
and gentle, and so on, and on, and on ; isn't he ?" asked Mary. 

"Rather an odd way to say it, but a good way, I'm sure. He is 
to us as a rock or a lily ; as a lion or a lamb ; as God or man. You 
are right in your quaint reply, Mary." 

Another picture was now laid on the table. " What have we 
here ?" asked Grandpa. 

" A lady with three pet birds," was the prompt reply. 

"Why do you say pet birds?" 

" Because, wild birds wouldn't be so tame," was Carrie's reply. 
■"They would fly away, but these little darlings are happy as though 
they were under their mother's wings. Precious little dears ! I wish 
I had such a bunch of tame birds." 

" What would you do with them if you had them ?" asked 
Grandpa, smiling very kindly. 

" Do ? Why, I'd love them and feed them and clean their cages, 
and — oh ! I'd just take the best care in the world of such sweet, help- 
less little dears. That's what I'd do." 



510 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



"This is a fancy picture, of course," added Grandpa. "I do not 
know anybody who ever had birds tamed in this way, though I am 
sure many such cases exist. How small and helpless these little fel- 
lows are, and yet they nestle together upon their protector's finger 
as much as to say, We are safe and happy ; you will do for us all 
that we need. For a lesson from this, let Mary read Luke xii, 6, 7." 

Mary read these words : "Arc not five sparrows sold for two far- 
things, and not one of them is forgotten before God ? But even the 
very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; ye 
are of more value than many sparrows." 

"That is just too sweet," said Carrie. "God remembers every little 
sparrow and cares for it, and we are of more value than many of 
them. That is very precious." 

"And will not He be as good in His care of you as Carrie would 
be of a lot of pet birds ? Is Carrie kinder than the Lord?" 

"Why, no!" exclaimed all. 

"Any of us would be kind to birds," said Carrie; "but God is 
better than we and will be kind to us, I'm sure. We are worth more 
than many flocks of birds." 

Grandpa nodded assent to Carrie's' argument and then told this 
little story: "Years ago, when many colored people in our land were 
slaves, a preacher of their own number was talking to them from this 
text about the sparrows. He repeated over and over the fact that 
five sparrows cost but two farthings, but two farthings, but two 
farthings, and yet, said he, God doesn't forget one of them, not one 
of them. Think of that, you fifteen hundred dollar darkey." 

"Good!" exclaimed Marv, laughing. "A fifteen hundred dollar- 
darkey was certainly safer than a half-farthing sparrow." 

"So Jesus, by teaching from nature, assured His disciples that they 
should be sheltered and fed. Happy are all they who enjoy His care 
and comfort !" 




CARINQ FOR THE BIRDS. 



512 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 

THE VENERABLE PRISONER; 

Or, BROAD VIEWS FROM A NARROW ISLAND. 



•"nr^O-MORROW I leave you," began Grandpa, "for a long 

visit with your uncle. This will make just one hundred 

-*- times that we have seated ourselves for an evening's chat 

on Bible stories, and now, for our last evening, I propose to talk 

about the last book of the Bible." 

The children looked sad at this opening statement of Grandp.. 
but knowing his departure was positively fixed, and comforted with 
the fact that their father was soon to be home to stay, they choked 
down their sad feelings and asked Grandpa to do what he proposed. 

"When the Apostle John had become very old," Grandpa went 
on to say, "he was banished to Patmos, a dreary, rocky little island, 
situated about one hundred miles off the shores of Asia Minor, in 
the Aegean Sea. It has mines of tin upon it, and in John's day 
prisoners were sent there to work these mines for the Roman Gov- 
ernment, which owned the island. The story is that John had been 
sentenced to death by being thrown into a huge kettle of boiling oil. 
The cruel act was performed ; but God preserved him, and the oil 
did him no harm ; whereupon he was sent to Patmos to spend the 
rest of his life in the mines." 

" How old was he then, Grandpa ?" asked Carrie. 

"About ninety years old, but still full of vigor. Whether he did 
work in the mines or not, we cannot say ; but while on that island 
the Lord came to him and revealed many wonderful things. Through 
John He sent messages to the seven principal Churches of that day, 
and showed him also a great many wonderful sights by which things 



514 GRANDPA GOODWIN' S STORIES. 



yet to happen were made known. The end of all earthly things was 
clearly explained also, and the final home of the saints, the New 
Jerusalem, was gloriously described. All these splendid truths are 
found in that last book of the Bible, which is a record of what John 
saw and heard when he was an exile upon that miserable rock." 

" Why did they send John there, Grandpa ? What harm had he 
done?" 

" None at all, Carrie. He was sent there simply because he loved 
God and tried to serve Him faithfully. But his stay there has given 
us one of the most beautiful books of the Bible. It is full of love 
and light and glory. But let me read you a few of its finest pas- 
sages." 

The demand that Grandpa should read was unanimous. Indeed, 
nobody felt much like talking, because he was so soon to leave them. 
He turned over the leaves of the big family Bible and, after a few 
moments, said : 

" In the fifth chapter is an account of a great company about the 
throne of the Lord Jesus, and John says : They sung a new song, 
saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals 
thereof: for Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by Thy 
blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation : and 
hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on 
the earth. And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels 
round about the throne, and the beasts, and the elders : and the 
number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands 
of thousands ; saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that 
was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, 
and honor, and glory, and blessing." 

"What a grand song!" exclaimed Carrie. 

" In the seventh chapter he tells of a company dressed in white 
robes, and in answer to the question who they are, it is said : These 
are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their 
robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore 



THE VENERABLE PRISONER. 515 

are they before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in 
His Temple ; and He that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among 
them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more ; neither 
shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is 
in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto 
living fountains of waters ; and God shall wipe away all tears from 
their eyes." 

"How lovely!" exclaimed both girls together. 

" In the nineteenth chapter is the account which suggested to the 
-great musician, Handel, his famous Hallelujah Chorus — one of the 
grandest musical compositions of the world. John says, And I heard 
as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many 
^waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia ! for 
•the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and 
-give honor to Him, for thcmarriage of the Lamb is come, and His 
-•wife hath made herself ready." 

" What does he mean by the voice of many waters ? Waters don't 
=say anything," added Charley. 

" On the rocks of Patmos the waves of the sea dashed continually. 

By day or by night John heard their ceaseless surging. Sometimes 

in a storm it sounded like the deepest thunders. . That was his way 

of explaining the unending and mighty volume of praise which heaven 

poured forth to the Redeemer." 

" How grand !" added Mrs. Reed, the little folks simply listening 
-in silence, as though the sound of that mighty song really reached 
them. 

" In the twenty-first chapter," added Grandpa, " is a description of 
the Heavenly City, the New Jerusalem. John says : And the city 
liad no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it : for the 
glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And 
the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it : and 
the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it. And 
ihe gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no 



•516 GRANDPA GOODWIN'S STORIES. 



night there. And they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations 

into it. And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that de- 

fileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie ; but 

they which are written in the Lamb's book of lif< 

" That's a better place to live in than the Garden of Eden was, 

isn't it ?" said Charley, in a mood much more serious than was usual 

with him. 

"I will read one passage more," said Grandpa, whose kind face 

fairly glowed with pleasure as he talked of these splendid things. 

" In the last chapter of all, John says: And he shewed me a pure river 
of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God 
and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it and on either side 
of the river was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of 
fruits, and yielded her fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree 
were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more 
curse ; but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His 
servants shall serve Him. And they shall see His face, and His 
name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no nio-ht there 
and they need no candle, neither light of the sun, for the Lord God 
giveth them light ; and they shall reign forever and ever." 

Grandpa's voice trembled as he ceased to read ; a tear trickled 
down his cheek ; he rose, kissed each of the party, and went to his 
room, while the children declared they never could live without 
Grandpa and his charming after-supper talks. 






^"*5^L 



** 






*J 
















I 



■ 



If" 






m 



IB 



